Chapter 29: Lirath

"What a wonderful place" he spoke as he regarded his surroundings happily. He was standing in the middle of a small clearing so not a single tree could prevent the sunlight from shining down on him. He took a deep breath, extending his arms as he enjoyed the warm embrace of the sun. The sun was smiling at him but not only at him. There was another person who received the pleasant embrace of the sun. She stepped next to the young elf who was still standing in the middle of the clearing and enjoyed the sight of the beautiful nature around them.

His long ears allowed him to hear the twittering of the birds clearly, even from a distance. The birds were not the only animals which were around them. He could hear all of them, even the small ants which were pickingsmall pieces out of blackberries which were lying on the ground near their anthill. He could hear insects, mice and other smaller creatures as they rustled through the foliage. He could hear deers and even boars in the far. That was only possible because he had the absolute pitch and a very close connection to nature, like every other high elf. His companion didn't have such a connection so she couldn't hear or feel what he was feeling and hearing.

The woman smiled as the young man started to spin around until he couldn't take it anymore and needed a break. She shook her head, giving him an amused smile. She chuckled about his innocence and childishness. He may be thirty-seven years old, which meant he was seventeen years older than her, but he still behaved like a child. Sometimes at least. He was still a child, according to the laws of his people.

The woman couldn't understand why high elven men and women only reached adulthood at the age of one hundred. High elves at the age of twenty looked similar to humans at the same age. They still looked young but not too young. Most of them were fully grown and behaved like mature young individuals. The only difference between high elves and humans was that high elves lived a lot longer than humans. They could become older than three thousand years which was the only reason why they only reached adulthood on their hundredth birthday.

There were no other reasons why high elves were considered as children, adolescents or teenagers for so long. They didn't behave differently than adult humans so it would only make sense to change the laws and stipulate that they would reach adulthood on their twentieth birthday. But only the elven king could change the laws. There was nothing the woman could do.

It only annoyed her that other humans asked her how she could be together with a child or a teenager. Lirath was anything but a child or a teenager. He looked like a mature young man and he behaved like one, most of the times at least. At this very moment, he was not behaving like a thirty-seven years old man. More like a sixteen years old human teenager. But she loved it whenever he behaved like this. She loved his silly and his playful side. The funny thing was that she had been a teenager when they had met four years ago. It was love at first sight.

She didn't like men who were totally serious all the time, even in their free time, and didn't understand fun. Life was hard and too short, at least for humans like her. Lirath's life will probably last much longer than hers because of his high elf genes. Her lifetime was limited, Lirath's too but he could live up to thirty times longer than her.

She loved to fool around with him when nobody watching. She could talk to him about everything, there was no topic he didn't want to talk about. He was the opposite of a spoilsport. He was a very funny and sometimes silly guy. But he could also be serious when the situation required it. He was very smart and he knew when he could behave like himself and when he had to behave differently to not make a fool of himself.

In her eyes, Lirath was not a child, not even a teenager. He was an adult and she was not the only person who shared her opinion. Lirath had told her that all the other high elves couldn't understand why the High King hadn't changed the laws yet. His people still had to wait until they were a hundred years old to be regarded as adults. There were many arguments for a law change and no real arguments against it.

The high elves could attend the examinations for rangers, warriors, rogues, mages, paladins and other professions when if they were fifty years old. They could go to war when they would have completed their apprenticeship, which only lasted three to five years. This meant that High King Anasterian Sunstrider was sending teenagers to war. Teenagers by law. There was no reason to not consider them as adults. Also, people wouldn't need to ask their parents if they could become an apprentice in a profession. Parents still had to sign important contracts for their ninety-nine years old children. She found that absurd so did every high elf.

But she could understand that the High King was busy with other things these days. He was at war with the orcs and trolls,he didn't have the time to think about changing the laws which were about adulthood.

The woman only knew that the elven king would think about it at the earliest when the war against the orcs and trolls would be over. Well, to be honest, she had only heard rumours about that. She didn't know if he would ever consider changing anything.

Soft laughter escaped her lips as Lirath let himself fall dramatically to the ground. He was a big fan of theatres, role plays and acting in general. Sometimes she thought it was better for him if he would become an actor instead of a ranger. She knew it was his dream to become a famous ranger like his older sisters and his mother. He trained very hard every day because he wanted to pass the examination in thirteen years. He would be a lot better if he would spend more time on improving his archery skills than rehearsing and performing stage plays with other actors.

He could already be a very successful actor but he wanted to become a ranger so badly. That was the reason why he had denied all offerings he had gotten from all the theatres and playhouses in the territories of the Alliance of Lordaeron. She thought it was wasted talent because he was very good at playing different roles. But it was his decision, in the end. If he wanted to become a ranger then he should be allowed to become one. It was enough for him to take part in stage plays in his free time. He was happy with that and she was happy as long as he was.

She gave him a smile, spreading out the picnic blanket she had carried all the time. She put the basket down, which she had held in her other hand the entire time, and sat down next to her boyfriend who returned her smile. The blond elf wrapped his left arm around her waist while he pulled the basket closer. He opened it and took out all the items which were in there.

He frowned as he looked over all the items he had taken out and placed on the blanket. "Did we forget something, Camillia?" he asked, giving her a questioning look. She rubbed her forehead, counting the items. "I don't think so. We have bread, butter, sausages, cheese, glasses and milk. We also have moonberry juice, cutlery, cupcakes and fruits. I think we have everything, my dear."

"You forgot the most important thing," he said, smiling at her.

She returned his smile, giving him a curious look. "And what would that be?"

"Love of course," sang Lirath, leaning over to kiss her cheek. She giggled, pushing his head away playfully. She put her hands on his cheeks, turning his head so she could press her lips on his. He didn't hesitate to return the kiss, running his fingers through her soft coffee coloured hair. She did the same and messed up his hair a bit, which didn't bother him.

He was not like his sister Alleria who needed an entire hour to make herself look perfect. But he wasn't like Sylvanas either who only needed a few strokes with her comb to make her hair look perfect. She would also look perfect if she wouldn't comb her hair. He was pretty sure she would even look perfect with short hair.

Lirath pulled away eventually, his lips formed a smile. His smile was as perfect as Sylvanas' smile, he had the same eyes and his nose was also similar to hers. He was a very handsome young man and he had lots of love interests. Elves, humans and even dwarves but his heart already belonged to Camillia.

He had no desire to meet other women. He knew his parents would prefer a high elf woman but he also knew they would accept any woman from any race as long as it was not a troll or an orc. Alleria's lover was a famous human and their child was a combination of both races, a so-called half-breed. He was pretty sure his parents would accept Camillia and his siblings thought the same.

He had written a letter to Alleria weeks ago in which he had told her about Camillia. He had told her how he had met her, how she behaved and how she had managed to steal his heart. He had told Alleria that he loved her but was too afraid to make things official. He had told her that he was too afraid to tell their parents about her.

He had had his doubts when he had written the letter. But these doubts had vanished into thin air when he had received Alleria's response. She had comforted him, encouraged him to introduce Camillia to their parents. She had also told him that Sylvanas shared her opinion so did Verena who hadn't had it easy at first when Sylvanas had introduced her to their parents.

Lirath was pretty sure that everything would be alright and he would be able to be together with the love of his life without having to quarrel with his parents about their relationship.

Lirath kissed Camillia's lips for the last time before he pulled away and took the bottle which was filled with moonberry juice. He opened it and poured the liquid in the two glasses, handing one to the woman and taking a sip from the other. He put his free hand on her cheek and gently stroked over her chocolate brown skin.

She smiled, turning her head a little so she could kiss his hand. He couldn't avoid eye contact, feeling that he could get lost into those emerald green eyes forever. They stared into each other's eyes for a while and only managed to avert gazes when Lirath's stomach started to growl loudly.

Soft laughter escaped the human's full lips. "We should eat something, otherwise, you will starve to death."

"Oh, no please not that," spoke the elf, grinning at his lover. "Alright, let's eat something."

Camillia cut a few slices from the loaf of bread, handing three to Lirath who gave her a thankful smile. He didn't hesitate to spread butter on his bread and put slices of cold cuts and hard cheese on them. The topping of Camillia's slices was smoked sausage spread. She was not a big fan of cheese and she didn't like other kinds of meat or sausages. She always ate her bread with smoked sausage spread.

Lirath, on the other hand, loved all spreads and cold cuts. He chose whatever he wanted at the moment so sometimes he chose only one topping and sometimes he took a bit of everything. It depended on his mood. He mostly chose cheese when he was stressed and cold cuts when he was happy. He was happy at this very moment but also a bit worried about what his parents would say when he would introduce Camillia to them on this day, so he had chosen cheese and cold cuts.

The two lovebirds didn't say anything while they ate. They stared at each other, holding hands while their other hands held the slices of bread or other things they were eating. They ate fruits like bananas, apples and pears. They also ate grapes, green ones and blue ones. To be accurate, Lirath ate them. Camillia also took some but she only wanted to give them to her lover. His head rested on her lap while she was feeding him and toyed with his hair. His eyes didn't stop looking into hers nor did she avert her gaze.

They were silent for quite some time, enjoying the pleasant silence and the presence of the other. They didn't need to talk to have fun and enjoy themselves. They only needed to be near the other to be happy and make the other happy. They were glad that they had each other. She loved him and he loved her.

They had said that at least one thousand times to each other whenever they met. They heard these three words way too often but they didn't get tired of hearing them. They knew that other couples weren't saying these special words that often but they didn't mind that. They used these words as if they were essential words which were needed to form a grammatically correct sentence. Just like verbs.

They decided it was time to talk after they had enjoyed the pleasant silence for a while. They got up and started to talk about casual topics. Lirath had wrapped his legs around the brown-skinned woman who was more than a head smaller than him. She was only five feet and five inches tall while Lirath was six feet and three inches tall.

He wrapped his arms around her waist, hugging her tightly from behind. He rested his head on her shoulder, closing his eyes as he relaxed and inhaled the lovely scent of her perfume with each breath he made.

"I told my mother about you a week ago," Camillia said after they were done talking about acting and stage plays.

Lirath opened his eyes, taking one of her hands in one of his. "What did she say?" he asked curiously.

"She was surprised at first but she is okay with it. I assume it has surprised her the most that we came together when I was only sixteen. I don't think she minds that you are a high elf. I haven't told my sister and brother yet but I will tell them one day."

Lirath smiled. "I can't wait to introduce you to my parents. I'm not afraid anymore because I'm convinced that they will accept you."

"I may not know your parents yet but I assume they will accept me. According to what you have told me, they are pretty nice and tolerant people. Also, isn't your sister together with a human paladin?"

"She is. His name is Turalyon and they met during a mission. He is a pretty cool guy. Also, he is a strong and very talented swordsman. He doesn't look bad and he is charming. In my opinion, he fits perfectly to Alleria."

"What about Sylvanas and Vereesa?"

Lirath snuggled closer to her. "I don't really know about Vereesa. She doesn't tell me about her relationships. I saw her once kissing Magister Dar'Khan Drathir but that was years ago. I also saw her hanging out with the daughter of Magistrix Lana'thel, Thal'ena was her name if I remember correctly. But I think they are just friends because I don't believe Vereesa swings that way."

"You mean she doesn't swing in both ways like the Ranger-General?" Camillia asked, kissing the back of his hand.

Lirath raised a brow. "I don't even believe Sylvanas swings in both ways. I believe she is straight and her relationship with Verena was only a phase. But who knows what Sylvanas prefers. I don't really mind if she would prefer women over men. I can only understand her. Women are the best."

"Nobody knows they have been together, right?"

"Nobody except for my family."

"And me," added Camillia.

"And you, indeed," he laughed. "Well, Sylvanas is single at the moment and as far as I know, she has been single for quite some time. I don't talk with my sisters about their relationships and I don't want to, to be honest. They have enough close friends with who they can talk about their sex lives."

"Do you talk to your friends about your previous relationships or about us?"

"There are no previous relationships I can talk about. And no, I didn't tell them about our sex life"

"Because there is nothing to talk about, right?" joked Camillia, giving him a teasing grin. He ran his fingers through her soft hair, smiling at her.

"There is nothing I can complain about, nevertheless, I don't want to share the details of our intimate moments with anyone else. What about you?"

Camillia blushed. "I may have given some details to my best friend but only because I know she won't tell anyone. She's mute."

"That's why you are friends with her because she can't interrupt you when you talk," he teased, giving her a provocative grin. She hit his shoulder playfully. "You dick."

He grinned at her, running the tip of his index finger over her bottom lip. "It's the truth. You really talk a lot."

"I know," she admitted. "That's a bad habit."

"It's not a bad habit. I love to hear you talk, but sometimes you talk a bit too much, you know."

He returned her smile and leaned in to kiss her. She returned the kiss, inserting her tongue in his mouth. He did the same, putting his hand on the back of her head as he deepened the kiss. He ran his fingers through her hair while she did the same, caressing his back with her other hand.

They held the kiss until they needed to pull away to get some air. They stared at each other for a few moments before they leaned in once again to connect their lips. Lirath put his hands on her hips as he deepened the kiss. He closed his eyes to enjoy the kiss better, caressing her cheeks softly.

Suddenly, he heard a quiet noise from afar. He didn't recognize the noise nor its origin. He decided to ignore it and continued to kiss his lover. He heard the strange noise again after a few minutes but he ignored it again, letting his hands wander. He touched her cheeks, her chin, her beautiful lips, her shoulders, her medium-sized breasts, her slim waist and her wide hips. His hands wandered to her thick ass, over her thick thighs to her feet.

He enjoyed touching her soft body, enjoyed the warmth which was radiated by it. She enjoyed getting touched by him, not minding that his hands wandered to a place beneath her waist no other man was allowed to touch. The two lovers got rid of their clothing quickly, not minding if someone would watch them while they made love.

They were done after a while, getting dressed again. Lirath frowned as he heard the strange noise again, he had heard an hour ago, but this time it was clearer. Not only was he able to hear it louder, but he also was able to recognize it. It was a scream. The scream of a woman. A pained scream, to be exact.

"Something is wrong," muttered Lirath, looking around after he had gotten up. He saw nothing but his lover who regarded him with a frown on her forehead. "What do you mean?"

"I'm hearing the same noise over and over again. It has started an hour ago but the noise has been too quiet to recognize it. But now I'm hearing it clearly. Someone is screaming," he pointed at the west. "It's coming from there."

A worried expression appeared on Camillia's face. "Are you sure you didn't mishear?"

"I rarely mishear. My ears are not only for show, you know," responded Lirath. Worry was reflected by his voice.

Camillia remained silent, not knowing what to say in response.

"We should find out where the scream came from and what is going on there."

Camillia nodded in agreement.

"Too bad that I don't have my bow with me," said Lirath as he started to put the goods and other items in the basket. "Or my knives and swords."

"I hope you won't need them."

"I hope the same."

"I only have my favourite dagger with me," said the woman with the coffee coloured hair.

Lirath put his arm around her shoulders, pressing a kiss on her temples. "First we find out what is going on, then we will decide what to do."

"Isn't your village in the direction you have pointed at?" she asked, becoming more worried.

He nodded silently. "Windrunner Spire is there as well," he said eventually. "We should go now. I fear the worst."

Camillia didn't say anything in response, she just nodded to him, signalizing him to go ahead. Lirath folded the blanket, threw it over his shoulder, then he picked up the basket and started to run. Camillia didn't hesitate to follow him, giving her best to keep up with him. It was not easy because her legs were shorter than his. She fell behind but only by a bit. Lirath didn't look back to check if she was still behind him so he wouldn't notice if she would stop running. But she was following him, keeping the distance between them as small as possible.

They ran and ran, getting out of the forest eventually. They came to green grassland, moving through it quickly. Then they came to a small hill. Lirath stood on the hill and stared straight ahead. Camillia stepped next to him, looking in the same direction to find out what he was looking at. She noticed the tensed expression on his face. His eyes widened as he realized what was going on.

Camillia had needed a few more moments to understand what was going on. From the top of the hill, she had a good view of a village in the east and a building in the west. Both places were very far away from them, so were the clouds of smokes which rose in the sky. That could only mean one thing. Windrunner Village and Windrunner Spire were burning.

Camillia turned her head, looking at Lirath whose face was a mask of shock. He couldn't believe what he was seeing. This can't be possible...

Windrunner Village and Windrunner Spire were the most well-protected places after Silvermoon City and the places where the three mooncrystals were hidden. It was impossible that the trolls had managed to defeat all the guards and rangers which were protecting then, not to mention that there was no way that they had managed to get through the defensive line in the south of Quel'Thalas.

It didn't make sense either that the trolls were attacking the south. They had always tried to break through the defensive line in the south-east in which near the Amani tribe lived. The forest trolls had always attacked the east of Quel'Thalas but never succeeded. He didn't believe that the trolls abandoned their fortresses and bases in the east and south-east. He knew that his sisters were keeping them busy by attacking them every day and every night. They conquered base after base so there was no way the trolls were attacking them if they didn't want to give up their territories.

That could only mean that the orcs had stopped fighting against the humans and dwarves and had moved northwards to the south of Quel'Thalas. That was the only explanation which made sense.

'But why have the orcs changed their strategy and attack Windrunner Spire and Village now?'

'What prompted them to change their plans and assist the trolls?'

'Do they know that the humans could follow them at any time and surround them with the help of my people?'

'Why are they attacking Windrunner Village and our house?'

'There are so many military bases in Quel'Thalas which they could have attacked instead. Why did the choose a well-protected place where only civilians live?'

'They won't get any strategic advantage if they would raid these two places, right?'

There so many questions in Lirath's head. Many questions to which he had no answers. He was too shocked to move. He could only stare at the two places and the clouds of black smoke above them. His heart was beating rapidly in his chest, his body felt pretty cold and he had a lump in his throat. He had troubles to breathe in enough air, his entire body was trembling. He had a panic attack.

Camillia put her hands on his cheeks as she stepped in front of him. She lowered his head, forcing him to look at her. He didn't avert eye contact nor did he say something. He just stared into her green orbs, noticing that he got calmer the longer he looked at her. His panic attack disappeared, the lump in his throat vanished as well. His heart was still beating rapidly in his chest but his body didn't feel cold anymore and he had gotten his breathing under control.

"We have to do something," spoke Camillia as she noticed she had his attention.

"My bow and my other weapons are in my room. Nevertheless, I have to go to Windrunner Spire."

"I will go with you," Camillia said insistently.

His reply came like a bullet out of a gun. "No!"

"No?" asked his lover. One of her brows was raised, irritation and confusion were reflected by her facial expression and her voice.

"You have to warn the nearest villages and ask for assistance. The Sanctum of the Moon is the nearest place where you can get help," he replied, pointing at a spot on the horizon. Camillia's eyes narrowed, focusing on the spot. She needed a few moments to recognize the small outlines of a building. She turned her head, the expression she made showed insecurity and worry.

"Are you sure that splitting up is the right decision?"

"I have to go home to protect my family and my people."

"It's too dangerous to go to your home or Windrunner Village without a weapon."

"You could lend me your dagger."

"That's not enough to kill a single troll or an orc, not to mention a large number of them" spoke Camillia. Her face was a mask of worry, her voice sounded insecure and weak. She was afraid. Afraid of losing him. She didn't want him to go there alone but there was nothing she could do to help him. She was not a warrior or a fighter. She didn't know how to handle weapons. She didn't have much experience in combat. She was an actress and not a warrior.

"I have to get my bow. I can't just run away. I have to protect my family. My sisters are in the south-east of Quel'Thalas, they can't defend our family. My mother hasn't fought for decades and my father is not a fighter. My uncles, aunts and cousins aren't the best fighters either. I need to help them. I hope you can understand that."

Camillia was silent for a few moments but then she nodded. "I do but I'm still afraid."

"We don't have the time to think twice about what to do now. Every second matters, literally. I want you to run to the Sanctum of the Moon and warn the priests there. Would you do that for me?" he stared into her eyes, his lips were pressed together to a thin line. She couldn't deny him anything, not when he was looking at her like that. It was impossible for her to say no to these eyes or to this handsome face. She was not able to say no to him in general. He needed her. She had an important task to do while he had to defend his home, his family and his people.

"Alright, I will do it but take this," she said and gave him a dagger in whose handle her name was engraved.

"Thanks, my love," he said, pulling her in for one last kiss. The kiss was quick but still passionate. She wished she could deepen the kiss and forget everything that was going on around them but she knew she couldn't do that. The lives of numerous inhabitants of Quel'Thalas were at stake. The couple needed to hurry. Lirath caressed her cheeks one last time, kissing her forehead. "I love you."

"I love you too," she responded as she regarded him with widened eyes.

"I will see you later, my love," he whispered before he dropped the basket and the blanket and rushed down the hill. Camillia didn't hesitate to run in the direction Lirath had pointed at, running as fast as her legs allowed.