Even before Colin's eyes had opened, he could feel his body like it was on the head of a top, swaying in different directions in a somewhat rhythmic fashion. His eyes opened up to a subtle darkness, which was rather welcomed, as he could tell that any sort of direct light might have scorched his long -closed eyes. He managed to move his arms, gingerly pushing himself up and back against a wall behind him, allowing him to relax while also taking in his surroundings.
He was clearly within a darkness, trapped behind a collection of bars that lined against a hallway outside of his cell, his head spinning as he came to. Watching the bars up against the walls surrounding him, he could tell the lumber that lined the floor and walls was magnificently different from anything he'd seen down south, thinking there must have been trees unique to Northrend.
Now intrigued, his hand ran up and down the wooden slats beneath him; the lumber almost cool to the touch, almost like the silverbark he and Ovuun had long-since collected back in Darkshore. His admiration seeming out of place here, even to him, he quickly pulled his hand back toward him, staring off into the darkness.
Only this time, he saw something.
A pair of faintly bright lights, sitting almost across from him. Eyes. Staring at him, almost with a sinister intent, judging from their shapes. They were night elf eyes, surely, though Colin could tell they certainly were not Kyra's. He had memorized every hue and shape of her eyes, but this pair was immediately foreign to him.
He peered over at them, though tried his best not to offend whomever this person was. Instead of simply staring, he figured he had nothing much to lose in bring diplomatic, seeing as how he was, in this case, protected by the bars that had him captive.
He cleared his throat, speaking, though his voice was more gravelly than he expected, "Hey."
They didn't reply, so Colin went on, "What are we in for?"
Still nothing. In fact, the eyes seemed to shrink as if staring at him even more sinisterly.
Growing rather nervous by that, Colin went on, "I guess you were the one I chased back behind the inn; I thought you were somebody else."
A female voice suddenly broke the air, gravely, "Quite the missed observation. Bit too late to realize that."
Colin chuckled, "I guess. As soon as I saw your eyes, I knew I'd screwed up. You live and learn, I suppose- well, I'm not sure, in this case."
He looked around to look for anything that could be used for executions, but the voice spoke again, "My eyes, human?"
Nodding, Colin explained, still looking around, "Well, I'm sort of mated to a night elf, so I've been with her long enough to tell the difference sometimes. Hey, did you see who put us down h-"
"That's not something you hear every day."
Colin looked at her, amused, "Well, I mean, I didn't exactly expect it myself, but here I am. Not that I know where "here" is, really."
"We're under Deegan Poore's thumb," she muttered, quietly, "He's keeping me to Valiance Keep for 'trail'. Though, knowing him, it will be quick and very partial."
She groaned, "And you seem to have been rounded up yourself, probably as my accomplice."
That final word left her with an air of humor to it, though Colin failed to catch it as he was thinking of a reply, "Okay, so basically, we're stuck here for a while, huh?"
He noticed whenever she blinked, her eyes suddenly disappearing for the briefest of moments, though not the two lights vanished, presumably as she was getting comfortable, "Get used to it. Might be another day or so."
Colin watched her or, more likely, the darkness that encased her, "You seem pretty calm."
She laughed, "I'm not going to trail."
"I see," Colin smirked, "Any chance you could include me on whatever you have cooked up?"
She paused her laughter, her eyes suddenly appearing again, "Look, kid, if you're aiming for some sympathy points because you lay with one of my people, you won't find it from me. This is Northrend; the only law that stuck around after the Lich King were the ones willing to buy and cheat their way up the ladder. This isn't the place where you help strangers; you have you and your own, period."
Her eyes shut again, "I just happen to have the right friends is all. That, and I don't go running after strange people."
"You got me there," Colin grinned.
He relaxed, the two seeming to fall into a mutual silence. His opposite hand reached down to touch the lumber of the ship again, hoping its coolness would calm him, but all it met with was leather. He looked down, seeing that his satchel had simply been thrown in with him, offering him a sigh of relief. His sketch pad was in there, along with his never-ending quill and various other goodies he always took with him on trips.
He removed a small orb that lit up at his touch, giving him some light, as well as seeming to earn his fellow prisoner's curiosity. She eyed him carefully as he strenuously set aside everything in order, finally revealing a small vial of water. The elf's eyes seemed to sparkle as she noticed it, her body instinctively leaning forward to study it.
"Okay," she muttered, "I thought you were just bullshitting me."
Colin laughed, "Oh, about the whole mate thing? No, I really am mated to a night elf."
She nodded slowly, "It's been so long since I've seen moonwater."
Colin twirled the vial in his hands, staring at its contents. He had planned to wash his hands with some, which always calmed him down, seeing the smoky water seem to pour down between his fingers like vapor. His eyes looked over at the woman, however, his face grimacing as he pulled his arm back, throwing the glass across the inside of the hull.
In a split second, she caught the vial in her hand, whipping it across her face with tremendous dexterity, staring at the vial in her hand, nostalgically, "I used to play in the moonwells. At least until the priestesses kicked me out, oftentimes literally. Is this from Teldrassil?"
"Not really; the elf who conjured it is from there, however," Colin confirmed, seriously.
She nodded admiringly before tossing it back. As it flew toward him, Colin reached up, but at the hard glass crashed against his hand, a sharp pain suddenly burst down his arm, the vial dropping to his lap at he squeezed his arm against his chest, trying to dull the pain, a loud curse flying from his lips.
"You okay?" the voice asked, sincerely.
He nodded, "Yeah, just- I had to punch somebody. I can't remember the last time I had to do that."
"Welcome to Northrend," she teased with a chuckle, "If you want to survive out here, you'll need punch a few people. or creatures. What brings a human like you out here, anyway? You don't fight, you have a woman- you're not an adventurer, I'm guessing."
Colin smirked, more conniving now that he was hidden in darkness, "Just a quick business thing. Obviously, I wasn't expecting this to happen."
He went on, "What about you? How does one end up on the wrong side of a bad guy like Deegan?"
The elf laughed, "You may be open yourself, human, but I assure you, you won't learn anything from me. As far as you know, I'm just a feather in the wind; by the time you figure out a way back to freedom, I'll be long gone."
"Far away from home," Colin sighed, resting his head back against the hull.
He meant himself, but apparently, the elf took it as referring to her, leaning forward and staring in his direction with a sneer, "And what the fuck do you know of my home?"
Colin suddenly jumped back to watch her, confused, "I must mea-"
"You may fuck a night elf, but that doesn't mean you know shit; I have blood through my veins that would make you shiver- the last thing you want to do is piss me off, human; I'll start tearing shit off!"
He watched her in a confused mess, though as her outburst came to an end, a look of slow realization came over him. He smiled, only allowing himself to chuckle because he knew how much off guard it would out her. Sure enough, it did surprise her, enough to pause and just stare at him incredulously. Normally her threats worked, but…
Colin grinned, "I think I know more about your home, now that I think about it, than you do, as of late; at least, if my assumption is correct, child of Starbreeze."
Even without seeing her, he could feel her expression immediately change as the vehement air that surrounded the room suddenly extinguished. He began to chuckle lightly, shaking his head in disbelief.
"You have a sister. Kyra, right? And another, Vylira?"
The voice didn't speak again, and Colin couldn't make out any movement by her sounds. She was simply sitting there, absolutely silent, probably due to shock, he figured. Well, given her attitude toward her family, it may have been in horror, rather.
"Syheath?"
Immediately following his single word of dialogue, a sudden force flew straight into Colin's face, jerking him up in surprise as a pebble fell down toward his lap, a sharp, fiery shout coming from across the room, "Don't you dare call me that! Do not!"
Colin rubbed his face, "Calm down; of course I won't, if that's your wish. I'm Kyra's mate; as far as I'm concerned, you're family to me. A very angry, very adept at throwing things member of my family, but nonetheless."
Syheath laughed, though it was more of a scoff, "Well you'd better get over that real quick; I don't even know you. And if you don't refer to me as 'Shadowmoon', I swear to Elune herself that I'll make sure you're no longer able to be a mate to anyone."
"Note taken," Colin acknowledged, wide-eyed, "Don't even worry about it. Please."
Shadowmoon groaned to herself, muttering lowly, "Of all the people I had to be put in here with…"
"Do you not like your sisters?" Colin asked, grinning, knowing it was enough of a bad time that her screws would be turned.
"You know my mother was a Shadowleaf, right? I picked up enough; I could kill you from this whole other cell if I truly wanted."
Colin wielded a slightly playful smirk as he replied, "I'm still alive, though."
Shadowmoon seethed at her bluff having been called, but she remained where she was, seemingly content with just shutting her eyes and leaving him be, simply zoning him out. Colin couldn't have but silently chuckle, shaking his head. It was almost like teasing Vylira, he thought; all these Shadowmoons were different, yet all so similar.
He sighed, taking a moment to be silent. He couldn't see Shadowmoon's eyes anymore, so he lowered his head, watching the vial of moonwater rolling back and forth through his fingers as he played with it, watching the water within sloshing around.
He thought back, as he always did when thinking of moonwells, on that first morning he woke on Teldrassil, coming across Kyra in her nudity, though it wasn't ever in lust, which he found odd. She had chastised him, somewhat, afterwards, going on about how humans were so much full of those ideas, but even then, he had more admired her beauty than anything to do with his own form.
""You know," Colin began, quietly, "Your family sure does miss you."
There wasn't a response, but Colin went on, "You know, I met your twin brother. He has the same eyes as your father; I was sort of curious if you had the same. Kyra said he was always quite the prankster; that was after he sent me into a spider's den with a knife and one arm tied to my side."
He heard a sigh as Shadowmoon spoke up, "He always said he didn't ever need new pranks; just new people."
Colin laughed, turning serious as he sighed himself, "I think he misses you the most. I know you probably think Vylira and Kyra would be the ones to come here and scold you before dragging you off back to Teldrassil, but I know your brother missed having you there. He's gotten himself a mate, now, and even has a enchanting firm, 'Aaleas' Maelstroms & More'- nice place, though he makes sure all the books are laced with magic that makes them bite at people who don't purchase then."
"I wanted to peruse, not get a bruise," Colin laughed, "That's what he said, anyway. "
He shook his head, lost in his memories before he saw those two orbs of light reappear in the darkness, Shadowmoon's voice still unwavering as she muttered, quietly, "You should hear him wax poetic in Darnassian; those rhymes and puns would make a tree weep with laughter."
"[Just like a wisping willow]," Colin grinned in Darnassuan, though not receiving the appropriate laughter he'd been promised, from a pun he had, indeed, heard from Aaneas.
"You're not weeping."
"That's because you butchered the shit out of it," Shadowmoon criticized, rather harshly, "You obviously didn't end up with that bratty sister of mine due to wordplay."
Although Colin quickly noted the description he'd heard of Kyra, he slowly pulled his bag over and pulled his sketch pad out. He examined it quietly, Shadowmoon's eyes gently waving in the dark as she tried to get a better look at what he was holding. Suddenly, he dropped it onto the floor, shoving it before it slid powerfully underneath his bars, over the hallway, and underneath her own cell, coming to a stop under her hands grasp.
She gingerly lifted it up, only recognizing what it was as she opened the first page, finding a sincerely drawn picture of Dolanaar that Colin had drawn at some point. Shadowmoon remained still, her eyes not even blinking, as if entranced by the image for quite some time. She almost felt as if she were back at home.
Colin always carried a new sketch pad for every trip, so he knew she wouldn't stumble upon anything risqué, but as she turned the page, she gasped, suddenly jarring him from his relaxed stare. He watched her fearfully, hurriedly running the images he'd drawn through his mind, trying to figure out what she'd seen.
He paused, though, as he noticed the gentle sparkle of starlight running down, away from those now-soft lights of her eyes, her voice quivering as she spoke absently, "Brother…"
That's right. It had been Kelaeth he'd drawn, the first time Colin had seen him out of bed. He'd escaped that illness himself, leaving the Shadowmoon home to find that man, so serene, almost at home by the fire. It was one of the few pictures Colin had actually colored, which probably had evoked such a reaction from Shadowmoon.
"He's okay…" she spoke, more as a statement than a question.
Colin nodded, "Elune made sure to see to that. Your parents and him are home from Hyjal now. That was from right outside your home, actually."
Smiling gently, he went on, keeping an eye on the glow that shone off of his book, "A lot's changed."
"Not enough, I bet," she grumbled, still with an evenly cynical tome despite her few drops of tears, "Not that it even matters. I have my whole life up here; my very own life. I no longer need my family there to give it value. I ensure of that itself."
Colin stared at her curiously as she went on flipping through his sketchbook, suddenly scoffing in annoyance, "Those two. Ugh."
He surmised that she'd reached the drawing of Kyra and Vylira by the same fire, though he was still unsure of her disgust, "Why do you dislike them so much?"
Her eyes shot up toward him, curving down between each other in a grimace, "Ask them. If either one of them's enough of a woman, they'll tell you."
Shadowmoon slammed the boom shit before sliding back over toward him, her body curling away, her eyes following before disappearing, as if she'd laid down to go to sleep. Colin leaned his head back against the wall, looking up toward the ceiling. He'd been feeding her words, and even his sketch book, in an attempt at figuring her out, but after all was said and done, she was still a stranger.
He did know, however, that she was, indeed, a Shadowmoon. Were the door out of here to open, she wouldn't give up until she was out of here. He could only hope that he'd be included.