The Wicked Demesne of Butterfly Sunrider

When we could just move no longer, we made camp. After we all gobbled down a carelessly heated but surprisingly tasty noodle soup that Magnos threw together, I left Dorn in charge and took Ralenthra aside to talk.

"You've been quiet today." I said as we sat side by side at the river's edge.

Ralenthra sighed. "I haven't really felt much like talking, or at least doing it in mixed company."

"And you're still hurting because of Tordrin, right?" I added, cautiously.

Her head jerked sharply away from me. "I don't want to talk about him."

I continued, unabated. "He loves you, Ralenthra. I know it. Here." I struck my chest with my fist. "I'm sure he had his reasons..."

She stared at me, her eyes glistening in the moonlight. "How dare you defend him after what he did to me?"

"You really have to stop assuming that everyone is out to get you. It's not healthy." I said, matter-of-factly.

She was angry now, so much so that her voice was shaking. "It's kept me alive."

"The avoidance of death is not living."

"Save your platitudes for the faithful," she said bitterly.

"Just because you don't believe, it doesn't make it any less true. Rale, it's okay if you still need to talk about it, or even just cry."

Ralenthra shook her head. "I don't need to talk about it, I don't want to talk about it, and I don't care about Tordrin anymore so stop trying to play matchmaker with us."

I sighed. What I did next would either earn me a kidney punch or would help to release some of the pent-up emotions that Ralenthra was experiencing. Maybe both. Cautiously, I reached out to her and poked her in the shoulder. At first, she looked at me like I was crazy, but then she poked me back. I poked her again and she poked me again. We went back and forth at this until she finally started to laugh a little. Then I saw her shoulders start to shake. She turned to me, and a single tear was rolling down her cheeks. It was a start. "It hurts, 'Ledra. It hurts so much."

I wrapped my arms around her. "I know, Rale. I know."

Ralenthra found a comfortable perch in a nearby oak tree while I set up next to the river. I helped the men set up their tent and then took a discreet bath in the deliciously cool water. Finally, I changed into pajamas, wrapped myself in my blanket, sat down on my bedroll and started to go into trance.

And then, it began to rain. It wasn't exactly a soft and gentle summer shower either.

"Oh, damn it!" I quickly rolled up my blanket and bedroll before gathering the rest of my belongings and scurried over to Ralenthra's tree. Despite my emphatic pleas, she refused to come down and seek refuge in the tent.

"You're overdramatizing. I'm fine," she shouted over the storm, "And you've been spoiled by city life."

I only grunted in response. As I marched away towards the men's tent, she called out, "For every time he gropes you, you owe me ten gold pieces!"

~

"Just help me with this, will you? I've got to peel myself out of these wet clothes and I'm not doing it in front of you."

Magnos sighed laboriously as he helped me put up the sheet that would divide the tent in two. Kronk was a heavy sleeper, and sometimes I could barely hear Magnos over the snoring. "I just don't think this wall is necessary."

The sheet being properly attached, I started to undress. "You two have plenty of room on that side. And could I get some light in here? I'd like to be able to see what I'm doing."

"What do you want me to light up?" Magnos asked.

"The tent." I replied.

"The whole thing? I don't think you mean to say what you're saying."

I growled impatiently, "Then tell me what you need me to tell you."

"Look, just give me an object to cast light on and I'll give it back to you. It should be sufficient to light up the whole tent for, oh, about an hour."

I thought for a moment, then lifted the necklace Methrammar gave me over my head and thrust it through to the other side of the sheet.

I heard some clinking noises. Magnos mumbled a bit and soon the tent was filled with a gentle luminosity, adequate for reading. After a few moments filled with more clinking noises, he handed my necklace back to me. I found a secure place to hang my necklace and took the opportunity to get out of the uncomfortably damp pajamas I was wearing. Magnos cleared his throat and said, "It's a little too snug on this side for my comfort."

"Boo Hoo," I replied, as I dumped out my pack in order to search for another pair of pajamas. Just after I pulled them on, Kronk let loose a huge fart. Magnos groaned, gathered his belongings with surprising speed, and barged into my side of the tent. "What do you think you're doing?" I hissed.

"Escaping from certain death." He looked around for a spot to make himself comfortable and continued, "My, but you're the messy sort aren't you?"

"You're not going to be any safer over here, you know. Especially since you let some of the polluted air in. Now my side is contaminated." I had started to hold my nose and the last sentence came out pinched and nasally. Even Selune whined a little and covered her snout with her paws.

Magnos cozied up to me. "Well, if I'm going to die, let it be in the arms of a beautiful woman. Hold me, Seledra!"

Magnos' own pungent odor knocked me backwards and I quickly covered my face with my pillow. "You're not going anywhere near me smelling like that. Get back over to the other side. You smell as bad as Kronk!"

Magnos pointed outside. "Do you want me to jump in the river and run back?"

"You're dirty and smelly and streaked with sweat." I combed through my scattered belongings and found one of my soap stones. After sniffing it and finding the scent sufficiently not-girly-smelling, I handed it to him. "Strip. Go outside and scrub yourself down. Don't come back until you're squeaky clean."

Magnos sighed and rolled his eyes. "Turn around."

"What? You got an eyeful of me this morning!"

Magnos shook his head and twirled his finger. "This show's not for free. Turn around."

"Hmph." I turned around, but grabbed my hand-mirror and pretended to try to put my hair up with one hand while gazing rather appreciatively at Magnos' reflection. He took off everything but his breeches and walked outside.

~

I was busy reading my copy of A Banquet of Flesh when Magnos burst in unceremoniously. He was dripping wet, holding his breeches in front of him, and his teeth were chattering. My heart, and everything south of it, melted. A little. I got up and wrapped my blanket around him in an effort to dry him off.

Holding one finger out, I dragged it down the center of his chest, making a squeaking noise. Suddenly, Magnos took my hand, drew my finger into his mouth and sucked. I moaned and bit my lip. He wrapped his trembling arms around me and said, "Seledra, I need your warmth. I want you, Seledra."

"Seledra? "

"Seledra?!"

"Hey, Princess!"

I was shocked out of my stupor to see Magnos bobbing up and down on the balls of his feet impatiently. "Are you going to just stand there or are you going to let me dry off and change with a little privacy?"

I sat down with a pout as he pushed past the sheet to where Kronk was sleeping. I picked up my book again, opened to a random page and stared in shock.

Our clothes lay strewn carelessly across the room and were soon joined by the vase of flowers and complimentary bowl of fruit from the table as I replaced them. “Now,” I moaned. But as if distracted, he instead bent down and picked up the daisies from the floor, quickly weaving them into a crown and placing it on my head. “Look in the mirror,” he said. Turning my head to the left, I sat up and drew my knees to my chest while he wrapped his arms around my shoulders and sweetly kissed my cheek. I smiled at our reflection and he whispered softly in my ear, “You look like a Faerie Queen.”

"Again? That's impossible!" I sputtered.

"What's impossible?" Magnos popped his head in on my side of the sheet.

I juggled the book in my hands in a failed attempt to conceal it, but this only stirred up his curiosity. Soon, the rest of him, with nothing but his breeches on, was by my side. Oh, Sune. Why do you hate me so?

Magnos plucked the book out of my hands. "A Banquet of Flesh, eh? Reading about cannibals?" Then he looked closer at the cover. "Oh. Ohhhhhhhhh. You insatiable little minx, it's one of those Heartwarder-enchanted books, isn't it? A fascinating bit of magic these things are. Pulling from your memories to dramatize the best sex of your life in book form. Amazing." He clucked his tongue at me and handed the book back. "Read it."

"No."

"Are you embarrassed?"

"Yes, and it's none of your business."

"C'mon, we're both adults here." He lowered his voice to a sultry whisper. "I'll show you mine, if you show me yours."

I sighed, but deep down, my curiosity gnawed at me. "Oh, all right. But you have to promise not to laugh."

Blushing furiously and my voice reduced to a husky whisper, I read the passage to him. He stared at me a while, blinked, and then grinned devilishly. "It isn't Methy, is it?"

I shook my head. "No."

"Ha, I knew it. Too smooth to be that Mama's boy."

I rolled my eyes. "So glad you approve." I said. "Now it's your turn." I handed the book back to him.

Magnos took the book in his hands and flipped through the pages. "Huh." He scratched his head. "That's weird."

"Are you holding out on me, Magnos?"

"No, it's just that...the pages are blank."

I guffawed.

"I'll thank you not to laugh, it's a sensitive subject," he sniffed.

"You want to tell me about it?" I said, laying a hand gently on his arm.

Magnos shook his arm away. "No."

I looked down, a little embarrassed at my behavior. I mean, he hardly knew me. There was no reason I should have assumed any trust from him. "I see. Well, we should probably go to sleep anyway. We have a big day ahead of us tomorrow."

"Yeah. Here's your blanket back, by the way. Thanks," he said with a little smile.

It was damp and completely unsuitable for keeping me warm. "It's wet," I said.

"No worries," he said, "we can share."

And so it was, after I put my personal items back into my backpack, that Magnos and I laid our bedrolls side-by-side, laid down next to each other, and shared his blanket. Just before I drifted off to sleep, he spoke.

"There was a girl I was with recently, but she must have drugged me because I have no memory of her. That's why the book doesn't work. Or, why it does, but it's blank. Because my memory of her is a blank. But she must have been really something, Seledra. She must have been something."

Last night I dreamed.

A beautiful, golden-haired half-elf gave birth to a full elven baby boy in Evermeet, surrounded by sun elf relatives, and died soon after, but not before she named him Khiiral.

A temple to Chauntea in a faraway land was burnt to the ground; the only escapee a 14 year old girl who fled west, first on foot, then by boat and finally on horseback, for thousands of miles. After 5 years of crossing many lands alone, she came to a place where yet again she saw others who looked more like herself and understood her speech. The land told her she had not circumnavigated Toril, so she stayed, married a woodcutter and had a son.

Aelthas Vihuel, in his customary blue and green robes, crossed a field and approached a hooded female figure in green.

“Seledra?”

The woman turned and pulled back her hood.

“Who…who are you?” he stuttered.

A familiar voice spoke. “Do you not see the resemblance? The only things Seledra shares with her father are his name, his eyes and his unfortunate lack in stature. The rest belongs to me.”

Aelthas raised his wand, but the woman continued to speak. “I am Evindra Starwind, not that the name means anything to you, ignorant wretch that you are.” She cocked an eyebrow and smirked at the nervous young human. “Lower your wand, Aelthas. If I had wanted to kill you, you would be dead already.”

Aelthas did not move from his defensive position and the wand was summarily knocked from his hand. She sighed, annoyed, but not threatened. “No, I will not kill you. Instead, you shall suffer.” A bolt of lightning was shot from my mother’s hands, but even without his wand at his disposal, Aelthas blocked it.

“Asomatic Spellcasting, clever boy! Good to see you didn’t spend all your time at university getting drunk and deflowering maidens.” A gust of wind knocked Aelthas to the ground and my mother stood over him.

“Why are you doing this?”

She narrowed her eyes. “I do this because you have broken my daughter’s spirit. That I do not forgive."

Aelthas interrupted, crying out “Seledra would have done the same if I hadn’t first.” A crackle of electricity hit him, stunning him.

“Silence! My daughter has cried herself to sleep every night for the last week. She is inconsolable. My husband and I are sending her to the High Forest in hopes of settling her nerves. But you, you shall have no…such…respite.”

With that, a blast of silver light flew from my mother’s hands and hit Aelthas square in the face. Where a handsome young human male of twenty once lay, there was a man who looked closer to seventy in his stead. “Did you love her?” she asked.

He replied feebly, “Yes.”

My mother turned on her heel and walked away. “But not enough. Congratulations on your graduation, Aelthas.”

I sat at the vanity in my room, wearing my high-collared green silk dress from Shou, green silk slippers and my necklace from Methrammar and was pulling the last tendrils down from an elaborate hairstyle for the big occasion. I’d had plenty of time to work on my hair due to the strange dream I’d had. Was it real? If so, what did those first two women have to do with me? If my mother had confronted Aelthas, why did she never tell me? Is that reason for the “sickness” I’d heard he was stricken with before he began teaching at the Conclave? Was there a reason why this dream was filled less with symbols and more with complete events? After waking with a start, I couldn’t go back to sleep, and I became so obsessed with taming my hair that midmorning flew by without me eating even a morsel for breakfast. Today was the day I was to be presented to the City of Silverymoon as the object of Methrammar Aerasumé’s affections; it was to be announced that we were courting, which was the step before betrothal, which was the step before marriage. My father and mother had said that they might be in attendance which raised the stakes even more. Nine Hells, the whole of Silverymoon would be there. Even…

“How do I look?” Ralenthra came into the room in a lovely lavender gown. Not very stealthy, but if she went around in her usual thieves’ leathers, she’d stick out like a sore thumb (more than she already does, I guess). I noticed that she kept smoothing her dress over and over but said nothing. Maybe she was just a little nervous going out like this in a crowd.

I smiled. “Gorgeous. Do you want me to do up your hair?”

She grinned back. “Nah, I prefer to leave on time. How long have you been sitting here, an hour?” She whipped out some hairpins and started styling her hair into little round balls, one on each side of the top of her head.

I stood and took one last turn in the mirror, grimacing. “Two, actually. I just can’t leave it alone.” We fell silent, but for the growling in our respective stomachs. I turned away from the mirror and looked at Ralenthra. She was fidgeting with various compartments in her dress and mumbling off a checklist to herself. I folded my arms and raised an eyebrow at her. “So…are you going to tell me about your secret compartments?”

Glowing with pride, she showed off the deep pockets that looked like mere fabric folds on either side of her hips, a small bustle of fabric in the back that doubled as a compartment for some of her thieves’ tools and the re-attachable fabric just behind the hip pockets that made accessing the hip scabbard for her dagger that much more convenient. That thing has got to be gnome-manufactured. I nodded, impressed, “It also looks like you’re a little bit…more endowed. Is that a modification as well?”

Ralenthra smiled. “Good eye. It’s a push-up mechanism that not only works as a distraction, but storage as well.”

As she concluded with her own finishing touches, a knock came at the door. Dear Mielikki, was it midday already? I peered through a curtained window and sure enough, it was the coachman Methrammar sent to take us to the Festival. I gave Selune a hug and kiss and told her only to hunt for creatures that were throwing Silverymoon out of balance. And with that, Ralenthra and I boarded the carriage that would take us to the heart of the Festival. As we sat there in jittery silence, I felt the flask full of raspberry liqueur in my little silk purse. Damn, I should have left that at home. I worried that the temptation to drink my nerves away might be too strong.

The two of us made quite the entrance in the gleaming silver carriage drawn by six Calishite stallions and even more so as we stepped out in all our finery, aided by the footmen. I can’t say I was overly concerned about it at the time, as I was starving and there were food stalls all about. What I craved most of all was a cream horn, and the best place in all of Silverymoon to get one was from Aradia, the woman who was the current proprietress of the Heavenly Queen Bakery, a business run by humans that had been passed from mother to daughter for centuries, almost since the founding of Silverymoon itself. Luckily, Aradia had set up a food stall for the festival.

It was packed, but the wait would be worth it, or so I thought. My stomach gnawed on itself as I pulled Ralenthra into line with me. She glanced up at the sign above the stall. “What is that supposed to be?” she asked. Could it be she’d never had this before? With an almost evangelical fervor even the Helmites would balk at, I smiled wide, and Ralenthra took a little step back. “A cream horn! It’s a Silverymoon specialty, especially at Midsummer. A pastry filled with sweetened, whipped cream!” Soon I was first in line. I looked back at her and she shook her head, so I only bought one for myself. She lowered her parasol slightly, looked at the sign again, and said, “Huh. Couldn’t they get a better artist?”

As I pulled the recently purchased treasure to my face, I said to Ralenthra, “You’ve simply got to try one of these. They are divine.” Ralenthra shook her head firmly. “I’m really not interested in making a spectacle of myself.” I raised an eyebrow at her, completely stumped until Ralenthra started making obscene gestures with her hands. I giggled and then lustfully took a greedy bite from my cream horn, licking my lips clean from the excess cream that had spilled out of the flaky pastry. Suddenly, I felt like I was being watched and looked up. To my horror, it was HIM.

Oh, Hells, no!

Ralenthra must have seen my frozen expression. “What is it?” My face remaining frozen except for the attempt I made to point using only my eyebrows, I managed to squeak out, “Look. Over. There.” She looked, and an expression of recognition passed across her features. She snapped her fingers. “Oh, Jonah. I bought my eye drops from him. Nice guy, you’d like him. He doesn’t test on animals, just…his…friends. Seledra? Hello!” I had turned away as quickly as I could, with Ralenthra having to run a little to keep up until I was satisfied that we had ducked out his line of sight. “It’s him. The boy. It’s him.” I kept repeating to her, as I felt my skin beginning to flush like I was a Lathanderite cleric at tonight’s bonfire. What had I been thinking? Silverymoon is a big city, but did I really think I was never going to run into him again? Ralenthra still seemed confused. “Jonah? Really?”

I shook my head, and it was at that point that I uttered the name that I had not dared to speak or write anywhere since that night at the Dancing Goat, not to Isioleth, not even to Ralenthra. I said, “His name is Magnos.” Ralenthra turned around scanned the crowd again. “Which one is he?” she asked. I groaned, “The one with the dark hair and dark eyes and wearing the ostentatious red and purple robes. You can’t miss him.” Then I put my head in my hands. Ralenthra chuckled. “Boy? The way you’re acting, I was expecting something more criminal. That, my dear, is a man. Well, sort of. I mean…he’s probably no less mature than you. Us. You know, the whole aging…slow…thing. Yes.” Still in a state of shock, I remained silent, but started walking again while she followed. Ralenthra continued, changing her tack, “You’re so like Tordrin in that way. You like men from Kara-Tur, Hells, anything from Kara-Tur, like he likes drow. Huh. So he’s the one that helped you practically demolish that room! We had to pay through the nose for that, remember?” She guffawed. I’m glad she thought it was funny.

Ralenthra and I kept moving through the crowd with her teasing me all the way. “Did you ever find your underwear?” I shook my head and she continued, “How about that bodice? Did you get that back from the shop yet?” I told her about my entanglement with the Glittersmoke girls. “I’m surprised the thing was salvageable. How would you explain it to your boss if it …" Her eyes grew wide for a moment and she froze. Looking ahead, I saw Tordrin and as I turned to her, she turned to me and grinned. I rolled my eyes. "Oh go on you silly goose, I'll be fine. See you later!” And with that, she ran off to join him, though something told me that she may have gone somewhat reluctantly. I decided at that point to start looking for something to calm me down for my engagement with Methrammar.

Hundreds of distractions awaited me. It seemed there was a busking bard for every fifth stall. On my left was the stall representing Kamala's Fine Herbs and Hookah Shop. Kamala is a halfling woman hailing from Calimport. She opened her shop in Northbank about five years ago and sells the best halfling weed in the city. Students from the Conclave and young artistic types crowd her place in the evenings and smoke halfling weed from the hookahs she imported from Calimport. She also sells mushrooms that were previously limited to use by druids and shamans in vision quests, which is a bit less ethical, but if people want to expand their spiritual horizons, I'm not averse to looking the other way when I see her selling some. Of course, both the halfling weed and special mushrooms make said seekers hungry, and Kamala's slightly unhinged but culinarily talented brother Sammy obliges them by keeping late hours at his Calishite restaurant, The Djinn’s Delight (the same one my mother and I went to on the 28th of Flamerule). He ran the stall next to Kamala's today and unnervingly asked every customer with a Neverwinter accent if they knew a halfling named Tomi Undergallows. On my right, carnies competed with each other for the silvers of passerby, but with all these sights, sounds and smells, I still couldn’t get Magnos out of my mind.

Up ahead, there was the stall for Rand's Rare Books. Jaq Rand, the proprietor, has a wide variety of books and scrolls, including the erotica that Ralenthra and I devour. Discreetly, I picked up Memoirs of a Heartwarder. Those saucy Sunites!

As the glasses of wine increased, so our inhibitions decreased. He took my hand and led me to the dance floor, where I danced with him as I hadn’t danced with anyone in far too long. The band played ecstatically and we matched our movements to them for song after song, until finally, breathless, he locked his brown eyes on my green ones, tangled his hand in my auburn hair and drew me to him, drinking deeply from my lips. As he sucked on my bottom lip, I managed to growl, “You. Me. Upstairs. Now.”

Flushed, I slammed the leather bound volume shut. I must be losing my mind or something. At random, I selected another book with the delicious-sounding title of A Banquet of Flesh. I remembered that Ralenthra had recently picked this book up for us and that it was waiting for my perusal on my nightstand at home. My hope that it wasn’t about cannibals encouraged by the cover image of a handsome young man biting lasciviously into a peach.

Our clothes lay strewn carelessly across the room and were soon joined by the vase of flowers and complimentary bowl of fruit from the table as I replaced them. “Now,” I moaned. But as if distracted, he instead bent down and picked up the daisies from the floor, quickly weaving them into a crown and placing it on my head. “Look in the mirror,” he said. Turning my head to the left, I sat up and drew my knees to my chest while he wrapped his arms around my shoulders and sweetly kissed my cheek. I smiled at our reflection and he whispered softly in my ear, “You look like a Faerie Queen.”

My eyes blurred suddenly, and I gently put the book back in its place. I rubbed my eyes frantically, and groping almost blindly, I grabbed The Wail of the Banshee.

After slamming me against the door, he buried his face in my neck and my legs went around him instinctively. Then he moaned softly, but clearly enough, a name that was not mine. I froze. “Excuse me?” Slowly, he lifted his head and met my hardened gaze with a bashful grin. “Oops.” I untangled myself from his embrace and gently pushed him in the chest. “Who is Susan?” He raised his eyebrows sharply. “Susan? Who is Susan?” He was repeating my words back at me, using a typical male stalling technique. “Yeah. Not my name. Who in the Nine Hells is Susan?” He scratched his head, and if he were less drunk, he probably could have come up with a better explanation. “Ah, does it matter? You’re here and I’m here. Would you rather I was with Susan calling her by your name?” I slapped him and walked past him to start picking up my clothes, but he grabbed me by the wrist. “Let go of me,” I growled, and slapped him again. He smiled and dropped my hand. “Fine,” he said. “Fine,” I said. “Good,” he said. “Good,” I said. “Bint,” he said. “Bastard,” I said. And I went to slap him yet again, but his time he caught me. The heat between us was undeniable. He continued to smile. “You like it rough, do you?” I drew closer to him and whispered huskily, “Shut up and kiss me.” Soon the table had been knocked over, and we were on the floor.

Furious, I threw the book back on the shelf. Jaq called out and ran towards me. “Hey, are you going to pay for that?” My eyes bloodshot, I screamed. “No!” He backed off. “All right then. No need to get snippy.” I sighed and headed to the section where the translations of the newest martial arts serials written by Mao Jiao Long that have also been catching my eye were. I flipped through the first volume, The Way of Jun Fan and was so piqued that I bought it and the second volume, The Nine Golden Swords of Telflamm. Breathing a sigh of relief, I was free.

Soon I heard the familiar strains of Sun & Moon wafting through the air. I followed the sounds to the edge of their stage and listened with rapt attention to Tordrin as he sang:

My young love said to me, my mother won’t mind
And my father won’t slight you for your lack of kind,
And she stepped away from me and this she did say,
It will not be long love ´til our wedding day.

She stepped away from me and she moved through the fair,
And fondly I watched her move here and move there,
Then she went her way homeward with one star awake,
As the swans in the evening move over the lake.

The people were saying no two were e´er wed,
But one has a sorrow that never was said,
And I smiled as she passed me with her goods and her gear,
And that was the last that I saw of my dear.

I dreamt it last night that my true love came in,
So softly she entered her feet made no din,
She came close beside me and this she did say,
It will not be long love ´til our wedding day.

It was mid-afternoon, and after some more absent-minded browsing of the stalls, a meal of steamed pork buns at the 7 Little Wonders Inn's stall, and just a little sampling of the local brews at the dwarven-run Ale Gardens, I found Methrammar easily, as tall as he is. He took me in his arms and kissed me so deeply and tenderly that I was almost woozy from it. He smiled broadly and pressed his forehead to mine. “I apologize, my darling. I know that was slightly against social convention, but oh, what you do to me.” He lifted my chin with his finger, smiled warmly and continued, “You are devastatingly beautiful today, my love. I pity the other men who gaze upon you and know that they can never have you. Come, let’s present you.”

This was it, my crowning moment of glory, the most important day of my life thus far. Time seemed to slow down as we moved through the crowd and I passed by my parents, offering a little smile. My father looked slightly less stern and maybe a little proud, or was it prideful? My mother smiled a smile that didn’t reach her eyes. Her thoughts seemed elsewhere, and when I tried to follow them, I felt as if I were falling into a deep whirlpool. Methrammar gently tugged on my arm, as I had forgotten myself.

And with a flourish of horns and drums, as Methrammar and I were about to take the stage, a sight I was quite unprepared for confronted us. First, I almost fell over when, with a snap, all my pleasure centers fired at once. Normally, I would see that as good, but at the time, it could only mean one thing: the wards were down. Then, I had to remind myself that I had not sampled Kamala's hallucinogenic wares because my eyes and ears told me that a horde of trolls were off in the distance, about a mile away and getting closer. Methrammar quickly ran off to join the Knights in Silver in repelling the monsters but not before telling me to get somewhere safe. I turned and saw my parents; my father standing ramrod straight, holding my restless mother’s arm like an anchor. I ran to them, but was repelled by some sort of force field that my father must have cast. “Why aren’t you helping?” My father responded curtly, “My days of getting involved in the affairs of others are over.” He turned to my mother with a stern look. “And so are hers.”

I ran for cover and started to wish that I hadn’t left my sword, or my wolf, for that matter, at home. Something positively itched at my fingers, and rather than being scared, I was actually a bit excited, if a bit worried about Ralenthra. I couldn’t just crouch there and wait for rescue, so I looked around for a weapon. I saw a bucket of water not two feet away from me and looked down in defeat. “This is hopeless,” I moaned. Then I looked again. I ripped the skirt of my dress off at the middle of my thigh and tore it into three long strips. I dunked those strips of silk into the bucket of water and proceeded to braid them together, all the while stealing glances at the troll’s hunting party as they drew nearer and nearer. Finally, I tied knots at both ends so the silk braid wouldn’t fall apart, slung my purse across my torso, climbed up on top of a stand and waited. When a huge troll broke away from the thick of the battle, I leapt on top of him and wrapped the silk cord around his neck and twisted it tightly. He grabbed at his throat, but couldn’t get his big hands underneath the braid. Just then, another troll grabbed me around my waist and held me up in the air, roaring. The first troll didn’t like that and threw a punch at the troll holding me, sending me flying. I hit the ground with a thud and started to feel a little triumphant when a third troll came by and hoisted me into a cage along with a couple of total strangers. I looked around and saw that there were, in fact, dozens of these cages about the festival grounds. There is usually only one use for a troll cage: storage for future troll meals.

After a while, the wards went back up, the sounds of battle dissipated, and I saw Methrammar returning to the area with an expression of triumph mixed with confusion. For a moment, I thought he had seen me. I freely admit that at that moment I was in no condition to be presented to the people of Silverymoon; dress torn, skin flushed, hair I had worked so hard to tame disheveled. I may have even broken a nail. My last moments in the cage were spent fruitlessly scanning the crowd for Ralenthra and in prayers to Lady Mielikki for her safety. It was at that moment that my cage was opened by a Silverymoon High Guardsman, who started patting me down.

“Excuse me, just what do you think you’re doing?” I put my hands on my hips and raised an eyebrow at the young officer.

The guardsman tipped his helm to me. “This is just a routine search, Miss. To make sure you’re unharmed.”

“Well, officer, I am employed by the city as a druid. I can assure you that I am totally uninjured.”

The officer looked me up and down. “You look like you must have put up quite the fight back there. Are you sure you didn’t hit your head?”

It was possible. I had a small mirror in my purse, so I slung it back around and opened it up. Seeing a small silvery glint, I snatched out its source. Unfortunately, it wasn’t my mirror. It was, however, a damn Lauthaul token, a big no-no for low-level city employees like me, to say the least. I’m not sure what grew wider upon seeing it, my eyes or the Guardsman’s smile.

I was arrested before I could catch Methrammar’s eye.

As long as there were people watching, the Guardsman handled me gently, but when we got to the prisoner’s wagon, I was shoved unceremoniously inside, where I landed right in someone else’s lap. Someone familiar. It was when he touched my face that I knew who he was, that unmistakable spark. Soon I was looking straight into the eyes of Magnos. He winked, grinned and said, “Haven’t we met before?”

I woke up in the middle of the night. It was just as well that Methrammar had gone back to his own quarters because I had work to do. I ritually bathed, dressed in my druid's robes and, after descending to the forest floor, chose a tree whose dryad I would serve for the next day. Usually this day-long ritual consists of small tasks done for the dryad (or treant, where applicable) and most dryads I have served during my years have been pretty low maintenance. Of course, I'd never tried to combine a Song of Trees ritual with a wedding before.

From what I'd been able to gather (Sylvan gets a little rusty when you only use it once a month), this dryad was once a wild elf druid named Ebudae. She was mortally wounded fighting the corrupt Blue Bear Tribe of Uthgardt barbarians and, after the ritual that ended her life as an elf was performed, she was buried under the oak tree she is now bonded to about half a century ago. I asked her if she had known Ariel in life and she replied that she had once been a part of Ariel's circle when she was a druid. I explained the day's festivities and her eyes lit up.

"Ariel's firstborn daughter. I remember her when she was just a baby. May I come to the wedding? It's been so long."

I'd never heard of a dryad attending a wedding before. I replied "Since I'm performing the ceremony..." My eyes grew wide as I wondered if I had possibly overextended myself for this day. "I don't see why it should be a problem."

The dryad smiled. It was like she'd read my mind. "Do not worry, sister druid. My needs are few. A handful of berries here, a glass of mead there."

For the first few hours, things ran pretty smoothly. Ebudae and I chatted and I made her breakfast. Then, at the crack of dawn, the Harpers got up, bickering over who got to bathe in the nearby stream first. The twins came down next, as did Riol, the half-orc orphan that Ariel adopted when I first came out to train with her (I remember feeding and bathing him and now he's all grown up). They started setting up what was left to set up on the grounds and I went to help them as my dryad seemed content just lounging in a patch of sunlight, her feet dipped in the stream.

The guests began to make their way down. First were Ralenthra and Linu, who were chatting amiably, followed by a pretty but haughty looking bard who introduced herself to me as Sharwyn ("just Sharwyn"), who otherwise spoke to no one and a nicely cleaned-up half-orc who introduced himself to me as Daelan Red Tiger. We made small talk about the state of the Red Tiger clan until Methrammar came down. Finally Ariel and Celeborn made their way down and I understood why I had not seem him at lunch the previous day. In the short while since I had seen him last, he had become quite frail and perhaps was even making preparations for the passing west. Neighbors began filing in from the other villas and guests began taking their seats. I made one last check-in with Ebudae before taking my place at the altar.

For those of you not in the know, druid weddings are a bit...long. The ceremony alone lasts about three hours. The site has to blessed, the couple has to blessed, the bread and salt they share in the first "movement" has to be blessed and there are interludes to be sung by soloists at the right intervals. And that's just to start. But even so it is still a lot less high maintenance than the day-long pomp of a Lathanderite ceremony or your typical weeklong gnome wedding!

First up, I sang, blessing the place, blessing the guests, invoking the Treefather, the Earthmother and the Forest Queen. Then the couple approached the altar, so I got to bless them as well. They did the traditional chants for the first movement (Aarin was well rehearsed for someone who wasn't a druid), shared the bread and salt and that was followed by Sharwyn's solo.

During her solo, I had a brief chance to scan the audience and it was then that I realized that something was wrong. We were missing two of our soloists, Taeghen and Thralia. In the brief time we'd had together, Ralenthra had managed to teach me rudimentary drow sign. I managed to catch Ralenthra's eye and started signing to her, but it seemed that either I still need more work or I was too nervous to sign anything properly. She signed back "What?" and finally, as I realized time was of the essence, mouthed the words "where's Thralia" to her. I saw her turn to Tordrin and the two of them excused themselves, heading to the Harper's camp after Tordrin stopped and briefly whispered to Jaden, who nodded. When Taeghen's turn to sing came, he was still nowhere to be found. Instead, Jaden rose from his seat, walked to the altar and sang the solo instead.

Next came the pricking of the fingers of the bride and groom and the sharing of blood. Take it easy, it was just a few drops. Sharwyn looked a bit pale and I wondered at that moment exactly how useful she was in combat. After that part was done, Ariadne sang her solo, wisely taking it a little more slowly than usual, as Tordrin's solo was coming up next and he had yet to return. Finally, I saw them approaching, but without Taeghen and Thralia. As they drew closer, I saw the shadow that had descended upon both their faces, though it was clear they hadn't had a spat...their body language was even more intimate than I had seen after Methrammar and I had left lunch yesterday. I made a mental note to ask her about that. After Ralenthra took her seat and Tordin approached the altar for his solo, I saw her mouth the words "not coming" to me. Larue's Horn!

In my mind, I beckoned Selune to bring Ebudae to me and the dryad was beside me before Tordrin's solo was over. I asked her if she knew the particular solo that I needed covered and luckily she did. She agreed to fill in for Thralia and finally I could relax a little before the next movement began.

The bride and the groom each produced a lock of hair to be burnt together on the altar. More chants. Falco approached the altar and sang his solo, which was followed by Ebudae's solo. Everyone was so charmed by a dryad performing at the wedding that I don't think they minded that the program wasn't followed exactly as printed.

Finally, the last movement commenced: the handfasting. Methrammar was actually a part of this one, binding the four cords the groom brought to the grooms arm on one end. Aarin's cords came from Methrammar, Lord Nasher (before the falling out obviously), the Neverwinter church of Tyr (who donated the cord from material that Aribeth once owned) and Isendur. I attached the cords belonging to the bride to Pandora's arm. These were given to her by Ariel, Isioleth, Linu and myself. Chants from myself, repeated by the bride and groom went on as I wove the cords together until they were quite well bound. Finally, Ariel and Celeborn approached with Ariel's archdruid staff, which was laid on the ground at the feet of the almost-married-now couple. Pandora and Aarin hopped over the staff and that...was finally that.

***

It was midday. I had 12 more hours of service to go before Ralenthra and I could finally leave. Well, Ralenthra could leave if she wanted to, but I was stuck until my day-long service was up. Thank goodness everyone always want to talk to the bride and groom and not the officiant after most weddings, because I was spent. After checking in with Ebudae and promising her that I would get her some cake and mead as soon as it was being served, I approached Ralenthra and Tordrin. Tordrin excused himself.

Ralenthra whispered low. "What is the Eldreth Veluuthra?" At her utterance of the words my blood ran cold. I replied, "They are not words spoken of in good company."

Ralenthra continued. "Thralia and Taeghen were arguing. He said he wouldn't let her be a part of this...blasphemy against The People. Apparently it's not just humans he doesn't like. He gave her a lecture about the Talaviirs and...Tordrin and me. That's when Tordrin said Eldreth Veluuthra and spat on the ground. What is it?"

Just as I was about to answer her question, we heard a loud shout coming from the Harper's camp. Ralenthra and I ran to see what was going on and it appeared that Tordrin had just knocked Taeghen to the ground with his fist. He stood over Taeghen's prone form with a look of utter disdain. "You will not bring this evil to this place. You will not bring harm to May, my agents or Jaden..."

Taeghen laughed as he spat his blood on the ground. "Jaden needs no help from me to destroy himself. His fate is already sealed."

Thralia stepped forward, rapier in hand and she pointed it at Taeghen's throat. Though her eyes filled with tears, her voice was firm and strong. "We two are blood and that is why I spare your life today. But after you leave this place...you are no longer kin to me."

Taeghen seemed genuinely alarmed by this. "Thralia, please."

"No! You will not show your face at Moongleam Tower. You will not be granted passage into the city of Silverymoon. Every elven settlement between Evereska and Evermeet will know of your name and your deeds, and if I see you again, it will have been better for you had you never been born at all."

"You trust those blood traitors more than your own flesh. Foolish woman. Of course, what should I expect from a sun elf who gets rejected by a..." he snickered, "half-orc."

"Enough. Take your possessions and leave this place. We will have wards placed to prevent your return." She turned her back on Taeghen.

He reached his hand out to hers. "But, Thralia..."

She squared her shoulders and did not turn. "Goodbye, Taeghen."

And with that, Thralia strode past us and over to the stage. Luckily, Ralenthra and I were the only witnesses to this exchange as everyone else was quite immersed in the whole wedding business. As Tordrin approached us, I excused myself and saw to Ebudae's cake and mead. Finally, I sat down by myself with my own serving. Methrammar was assisting Meree and Jaden in setting the wards against Taeghen's return.

I thought to myself, Thralia is having a very, very bad tenday.

***

It took a little less time to tear down the ceremony area to make way for the reception. This time, we had Meree and Jaden helping out by levitating items and moving them, as they didn't quite have the brute strength of someone like Riol. As soon as I finished my cake and mead and started to add my help to the workers, he picked me up off the ground in a big bear hug. It had only been about half a year since I'd seen him last, but after being considered quite short for a half orc, he had shot up about half a foot in height.

"Leddie!" he roared with laughter. "You've shrunk!"

I smiled up at him after he put me down. "How are you doing, kiddo?"

"I've never been better! Isn't this great? I'm so glad I didn't miss the wedding. I got er...a little distracted during my patrol."

"Again?"

"Yeah, but it wasn't my fault this time, it was the wood nymphs!"

"What is it with all these irresistible half-orc males?"

He grinned. "That's a secret. Who's the other one?"

"Oh, May and I met him back in Everlund. Apparently when he's done with the er...ladies of the evening, most of the time they don't even charge him. And, uh..." I whispered low. "A sun elf friend of mine tried to get him to go to bed with her."

Ah, youth. With it comes indiscretion. Riol pointed at Thralia, who was being comforted by Ariadne and Miri. "You mean her?" he shouted incredulously. I jumped up and grabbed his arm. For a moment, I simply swung from it like I would from a large tree branch before he realized his mistake and lowered his arm. "Sorry, Leddie." We set about our work and continued our conversation.

"She's a bit sensitive about it, and what with her cousin turning out to be a psycho, losing one of her oldest friends and getting rejected all in the last few days, well, I wouldn't mention it."

"You can trust me, Leddie." And with that he proceeded to launch into all the local gossip as we worked.

***

Sun & Moon were soon setting up their instruments as I sat watching them with glazed eyes and the sun began to set. Ebudae spent much of the time chatting with Ariel and Ralenthra found herself in a conversation with Aarin before she made her way to take a seat beside me with her own cake and mead.

"So..." I turned to her and smirked, "You and Tordrin, huh?"

"Whatever do you mean?"

"Well, you two have been practically inseparable all day. And for another thing, there's that pendant of yours. That's moon elf work." I grinned. "Did he get that for you?"

She turned to me with wide, blinking eyes. "What, this old thing? You know how I like sparkly stuff. I just happened to pick it up during my many travels."

"Not in any of my family's rooms, right?" I raised an eyebrow at her.

Ralenthra rolled her eyes. "Of course not, silly." Her eyes turned serious for a moment. "I earned this."

I cocked my head. "Earned it? Like with a day job or something?"

I'm sure she thought I was acting clueless, but I was so exhausted that my brain wasn't quite working properly. I guess she decided to humor me, since she explained. "Back in Cormanthor, this was my reward for winning a little contest in a particularly ingenious way. My winning the contest led to my being trained as a rogue."

"As good a way to earn something as any." I chuckled. "Well, at the rate you're going, it may not be too long before Tordrin gives you another sparkly thing."

Ralenthra blushed a little and quickly changed the subject. "So...you and Methrammar, eh?"

I shrugged. "I guess. I mean, maybe. Who knows? We're both busy professionals and he doesn't exactly reside in Silverymoon proper. We'll see how it goes."

Ralenthra cocked her head. "Your enthusiasm is truly astonishing. What's the matter, Mister Goody-Goody didn't melt your butter?"

I sighed. "I've had better. But...I mean, that's not everything, right? He's a very accomplished gentleman from a good family. There are a lot of women who would give their eyeteeth to be in my position. I should be grateful."

Ralenthra laughed sympathetically and clapped me on the shoulder. "Whatever you decide, just try not to discuss me too much. I just had to extricate myself from another tangle with Aarin. It would be nice to go at least one more day and not have to get interrogated. Again."

"You can count on me." I gave her a hug and felt a strong hand on my shoulder. Apparently, another hand had landed on Ralenthra's shoulder as she looked behind her too. While Methrammar nuzzled my ear, Tordrin whispered to Ralenthra and she smiled. "See you on the dance floor!" she said as she walked off hand-in-hand with Tordrin. Methrammar and I soon followed, arm-in-arm. Tordrin apparently had received a reprieve for at least the first three songs Sun & Moon would play. As I saw them whirl together, I smiled. Good for them.

Though I dutifully checked in on Ebudae regularly, she didn't seem to need much from me and I was able to spend most of the evening on the dance floor in Methrammar's arms. I found him to be a very good dancer, but very formal. As the evening progressed, I watched Sharwyn drunkenly make passes at Aarin to the point where Linu had to escort her to her room. When Linu returned to tell us that Sharwyn was now out quite cold, Isioleth guffawed. Daelan retired soon after, after a dance with Ebudae.

There were group dances, there were more breaks for Tordrin spent with Ralenthra and a beautiful waxing moon illuminating the night. If it weren't for the exhaustion, I would say that midnight came too soon. Ebudae bade me a fond farewell before retreating back to her tree. Methrammar tenderly kissed me goodbye as Ralenthra, Selune and I were packed into my carriage. As we rode away and I began to drift off I only regretted that I never got to ask Pandora why she had not told anyone else in her family about Unebrion.

It was a hot summer night.

After an uneventful day at work, I escaped from the summer rain into my favorite pub, a dingy little dive close to the waterfront called The Dancing Goat. I only meant to get a few drinks, maybe catch a show, as they always have great music.

I wasn’t counting on meeting him.

It started out as an accident. I squeezed next to him at the crowded bar in my efforts to get some service, or at least that was my intention, but my cloak caught on a barstool and I stumbled into him instead.

Which caused him to knock over his glass of Cormyrian ale all over my cloak and the floor. Which I then slipped on.

He caught me in his arms and pulled me to my feet (young male, human, wizard), all flustered apologies, his agitated voice betraying a local, but rural accent. I pulled my hood back, smoothed my hair, and looked up into his eyes. He looked down into mine and thunder shook the entire building.

Jasper, the proprietor of The Dancing Goat, bellowed out over the resulting din, “Take it easy, folks! She can handle it!” The Goat had gotten a new roof installed back in Mirtul. Jasper was very proud of it.

The young man smiled at me, and for a moment I was speechless, which never happens. He was very handsome, almost pretty in a boyish sort of way; black hair, dark brown eyes, golden skin. His heritage appeared to be Kara-Turan of some sort. If he was local, I surmised, he was probably of Shou extraction, though something told me there was something else in the mix. He was tall, not too tall, but...just right. I liked him very much indeed.

He tilted his head, smiled and asked, “Do you like pineapple?” The accent was gone. Curious.

I stood up on my own power and finally found my tongue. “Hello, what an odd question! I don’t think I’ve had the...pleasure.”

The young man raised an eyebrow. “You should.” he replied.

I smiled at him. “Like pineapple or...have the pleasure?”

The mage winked and chuckled. “My lady, why not both?” He motioned to Jasper. “Pineapple. Ruby Port. Mint. Pineapple. In that order.” Then he dusted off the stool next to him and gestured for me to take a seat.

Jasper spoke. “Will do. And hello, Seledra! What will you be having this evening?”

I was still looking at the mage. I quickly turned my head. “I’ll have a glass of elverquisst-”

The mage interjected, “Ooh, make that two.”

“-two elverquissts, and we’ll share the pineapple dish.” I looked at the mage and smiled before turning back to Jasper. “My treat.”

The wizard shook his head. “Oh, no. I couldn’t possibly let you pay.”

I replied, “I have a discount.”

He tilted his head again with a smile. Which was adorable. “No, really. I insist.”

I winked at him. “You can pay for the next round. I’m not going anywhere.”



I love music. But I don’t remember much about what was playing as we sat and talked together, just a scant melody here and there. The mage's charm was not a polished thing. He did silly things like trying to read my palm and telling funny stories about pranks that he pulled at school...

“Seledra? That’s a nice name. You know, you don’t look like a moon elf. It’s like there’s...something else there I can’t put my finger on. Oh, wait!” He delicately stroked the tip of my left ear with his fingertip and I shivered with delight. “Hey, would you like to have your fortune told?”

And I like to drink, especially when I’m with a man, as it does wonders for...breaking down one’s inhibitions. But I didn’t actually have that much to drink that night and neither did he. We did eat quite a bit of pineapple, though. And when the band kicked off a lively tune, there we were whirling about on the dancefloor...

“Look at you! I thought druids were supposed to be stoic and serious.” He laughed after a particularly vigorous jig left us dizzy and leaning into each other for dear life.

“You’re thinking of Silvanus druids. They’re the real sticks-in-the-mud. I’m a Mielikki druid. We’re much more fun!” I giggled, and would have told him about the even wilder Shiallia followers, but I didn’t want to give him any ideas. “I mean, do Silvanus druids ride bareback on unicorns? They do not.”

“You ride bareback?” He asked, with a little flush to his cheeks.

“On occasion.” I winked.

He showed off a few of his magic tricks...

“Here, let me get that for you…” He raised his finger, and the piece of pineapple floated up towards my lips, I moved to grab it in my mouth at the same time he did. I bit down, he tugged, and slurped the remainder of the fruit into his mouth with a grin.

And he was able to keep up with me on a wide variety of topics, in fact, it was the exchange of information that seemed to excite him the most...

“Between Azuth and Savras for First Magister? Of course it was no contest! But you know what’s really suspenseful? Netherese. Wizard. Duels. They could wreck whole cities! Karsus bringing down most of Netheril was, in essence, just an elaborate duel with Mystryl. Which he lost. Well, they both lost, but She got better…”

He dressed richly, but did not carry himself like a rich boy. I should know, as I grew up around money. For one thing, he was too neat to be rich. Cleanliness of that magnitude is something servants worry about (unless like me, you had strict parents), but he had an almost compulsive bent to him the way he brushed dirt off or picked away lint from his garments.

What did irk me a little was that his eyes seemed to flit to anything in the room wearing a skirt, but as I had no claim on him, I brushed it off. Mostly...

“You know, if there’s someone else you’d rather talk to…” I started, with a raised eyebrow and what I hoped was an appropriate expression of disdain.

“Why would you say that?” He stared at me with a wide, innocent eyes.

I gestured at the various women he had been looking at. “You keep looking at other girls while I’m trying to have a conversation with you. It’s...unnerving.” I pouted.

He winked at me. “Ooh, you’re jealous!”

I looked away and crossed my arms over my chest. “Shut up.” Then I got up from our table. “Or better yet, just go do what you want, I’m going-”

The mage stood up, grabbed me by the wrist, pulled me towards him and kissed me.

Time. Seemed. To. Slow. Down. Everything and everyone but he and I melted away. Whatever elements that make us, the stars, the mountains, the seas - the very universe seemed to swirl together in a great harmonic hum of pleasure that wrapped around us and resonated outwards for infinity.

The building shook again. He whispered, “Did you feel that?”

I licked my lips to taste him again and gulped as I looked into his eyes. I briefly pondered telling him about the stars and the mountains and the harmonic resonance of the universe but decided that I didn't want to scare him off. “I don’t know. Was that thunder or my heart?” I wrapped my arms around him and kissed him back.

I had never met anyone who had even bothered to try to sweep me off my feet before, and though I've been around, it was nice to see someone put in the effort. I hadn't had so much fun in years, not since before I'd left Silverymoon.

When we paused to catch our breath, he whispered hoarsely. “Upstairs. Now.”

I tossed Jasper a few coins and my companion and I made our way up the stairs. Though we had flirted madly all evening I had no idea what to expect behind closed doors. Turned out he was full of surprises. Hells, I surprised myself.

With the door shut and barred behind us, we unclothed each other with reckless abandon. I giggled when he lamented that his robes would “get all wrinkled just lying on the floor like that.” After I sank my teeth into the soft flesh where his neck met his shoulder, he tore the stitched leather bodice of my uniform in his excitement. We struggled for dominance, spinning this way and that, slamming into furniture, knocking over anything lighter than we were; on the bed, on the floor, up against the wall, on top of the table.

He was a giver. Gods, did he like to give. And he was good at it. I was...appreciative, and tried to give as best as I got. This resulted in attentions so intense as to almost be retaliatory, though it was clear there was no malice beneath them, and then the cycle began again. We laughed as hard as we loved, and we loved hard.

Love. I probably shouldn’t use that word. But then again, anything less than that word to describe the events of that night just feels vulgar to me. Perhaps a better one will come to me in time.

After knocking over a bowl of daisies, the mage became distracted. He stopped, bent to pick up the scattered blossoms, and began to weave a crown of them, placing them on my head and turning my face so that I could see myself, and by extension, us, in the mirror. “You look like a Faerie Queen,” he whispered, and kissed my cheek. I watched our reflections; the moment was perfect, and it terrified me.

In bed afterwards, he babbled a bit, telling me his life story for all I know, only I couldn't hear him for all the blood pounding in my ears. After his dark eyes closed, I watched him. I recalled my first, and only other time, with a human; the fallout from our affair led to my being expelled from the Lady’s College and a lot of embarrassment for my family. Father was so disappointed in me, and only intervention from my mother prevented a sound lashing. He said to me, "You can't trust humans. They are nothing but trouble. For all the briefness of their lives they will make their time with you miserable." Worse than that was the threat hanging over my head were I to get involved with another human. Other fathers may joke about harming their daughters’ suitors, but my father is not the joking kind. Like it was yesterday, the pain stabbed at my heart. I looked down at the boy, caressed his face and whispered, "I won't give you a chance to hurt me. And I don’t want you to get hurt because of me. I want to remember you just the way you are, right now." I reached inside my pack. I didn't leave the Lady's College without nicking a few things for my trouble, including a vial of a potion of forgetfulness. One last time, I kissed the boy and as he smiled in his sleep, I put the vial to his lips and poured, just a drop or two.

Then I heard a light tap at the door.

"What are you doing?" Ralenthra, my drow rogue friend and housemate whispered.

"Ssh! He's asleep!” I hissed. “How was your take?"

"Plausible deniability?"

"Right."

Quickly, I covered up his face and got up. Ralenthra sniffed. "Eew."

I jumped about two feet. "Lurue's horn, you scared me! How did you get in here?"

Ralenthra shrugged. "It's what I do. Who's the human?"

I raised an eyebrow. "Plausible deniability."

"Right."

And with that, we left swiftly. I paid Jasper a generous sum not to tell the boy who I was and went home, hoping I would never see him again.

I think I finally have words for what it was I shared with him. It was a mistake. A beautiful, wonderful, terrible mistake.