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“Anduin!”
Imareck – champion of the Alliance, the Maw Walker, the broad-shouldered, burly, fearless paladin – immediately froze and began internally praying to the Light, when he heard his friend Taelia’s angry voice behind his back. Having just rescued his king from the Jailer with the help of his old friends and allies – Jaina Proudmoore, Baine Bloodhoof and Go’el – Imareck was currently the only thing standing between Anduin and Taelia’s wrath.
And it was not a good place to be in.
Anduin’s head jerked in Taelia’s direction. His eyes widened in surprise, but the foolish king, apparently, didn’t register the tone of her voice, as the next thing he did was actually to smile brightly at her.
Seeing this Imareck shrunk even more. He was present during the conversation between Taelia and king Graymane, so he witnessed the depth of the girl’s – quite rightful – outrage. However, he didn’t want to be present for whatever storm was currently brewing in the air. He looked pleadingly at Lady Proudmoore, who, along with Go’el and Baine, stood next to Anduin and Imareck himself.
Jaina, being the savvy mage that she was, immediately realized that something was wrong. Her gaze flitted between Taelia, Anduin and Bolvar, who stood on the opposite side of the war table several meters from them and was now throwing worried glances in their direction. Seeing the look of righteous rage on Taelia’s face, Jaina quickly figured out what was all that about. After locking gazes with Imareck, who was looking rather miserable, she quietly asked him:
“She knows?”
Imareck subtly nodded and Jaina swore under her breath. In any other situation paladin would have laughed – the long expletive she uttered could have made a seasoned sailor blush, and it definitely should have never have passed the lady’s lips. However right now Imareck could only agree with the mage’s accession of the situation.
“Be ready, I’ll teleport us if she notices our presence.” Jaina managed to mutter right before Taelia stopped near them. Hearing mage’s words, Imareck perked up – after all, he and Jaina were just as guilty about lying to Taelia – but as soon as he turned to his friend and his king, paladin’s improved mood vanished.
Taelia was holding her hammer, that was usually slung across her back, in her left hand.
And Anduin was still smiling at her like a smitten, ignorant fool that he was.
“Taelia! It’s so good to see yo…”
Anduin’s eyes suddenly widened, and only the rigorous martial training Genn insisted on putting him through made him duck and avoid a fist that was launched straight into his face.
“You lying bastard!”
“What?” Anduin, shocked, took a step back, looking wildly at Taelia.
“All this time you knew! You knew and you lied to my face!”
“What I knew? Taelia, I don’t…” suddenly his eye flicked to Bolvar and understanding dawned on him. “Oh. Oh. I see. I can expl…”
“Spare me you Void cursed explanations!” snarled Taelia. She kept advancing on the king and he kept backtracking away from her. “Genn already told me everything, and guess what – it’s not enough! I had every right to know the truth!”
When she brushed past Imareck, her gaze fell upon the paladin and Jaina. Taelia’s eyes narrowed.
“You two knew as well, didn’t you?” she demanded. However, as soon as she made a step towards them, Jaina grabbed Imareck by the shoulder and raised her staff.
“Anduin, you’re on your own.” She announced, and in a flash the mage and the paladin were gone.
Taelia swore loudly and then once again turned toward Anduin, gripping her hammer with both hands. The king’s back was nearly pressed into a wall, and he was desperately looking for a way to escape.
When Taelia tried to pin him to the wall with her hammer’s long handle across his chest, he quickly ducked again and moved to the side, running around the war table and placing it between himself and angry Lady Fordragon.
Taelia growled and moved to her left. Anduin moved as well, keeping the table firmly between them. Taelia stopped. Anduin stopped too. She jerked in one direction, then another. Anduin was watching her like a hawk, ready for any move on her part. Then Taelia darted off, running around the table as fast as she could, but her hammer was slowing her down, and Anduin managed to slip away. Taelia huffed, swore, hefted her weapon… and gave chase once again.
* * *
Baine and Go’el were looking at the unfolding scene with their mouths hanging open. They were both well versed in the ways of Alliance nobility, and both could tell that whatever was going on right now was not normal.
When the Fordragon girl began chasing the High King around the table, waving her warhammer around, Baine frowned and made a step forward.
“Perhaps we should rescue Anduin from Lady Fordragon’s wrath.” He suggested, but Go’el suddenly extended his hand to his side, blocking Baine’s way.
“Or, perhaps, we shouldn’t interfere. After all, if my life taught me anything, it’s that if a woman is running after a man with a heavy warhammer, it usually means something.”
Baine looked at his friend in disbelief.
“You seem to forget, that human ways differ from that of orcs… or tauren,” he amended. “Besides, you were raised by them, so I shouldn’t remind you that.”
“It’s because I was raised by them, I can tell you – our ways are not that different.” demurely said Go’el, while not tearing his eyes from the chase.
Suddenly, just before Taelia managed to grab Anduin by his cloak, a blinding flash of light made both young people stop dead in their tracks. Jaina reappeared right between them, grabbed Anduin by his shoulder, and teleported away.
After a few seconds of stupor, Taelia loudly cursed.
“Ah, young love,” rumbled Go’el, finally turning away from the scene.
Baine could only snort in response.
* * *
“Damn it!” Taelia let out an angry huff, threw her hammer onto the table in frustration and then placed two hands on it, still fuming.
Bolvar was looking at her thoughtfully. He decided not to get involved in a fight between his daughter and his old charge, however he watched them both closely, and it left him wondering…
Taelia glanced up, saw her father looking at her and paled slightly. She didn’t notice him when she entered – though, in hindsight, she should have expected his presence here, since he almost never left this room – and she was somewhat ashamed of him seeing her like this.
“I apologize for my behavior, father. I know it’s unbecoming of lady and… any grownup person for that matter… But he lied to me! To my face! And I couldn’t just…”
Bolvar raised his hand.
“I’m not concerned about that, my shining star.”
She glanced up at him again. “No?”
He shook his head.
“No… However…” when her expression became slightly guarded, Bolvar paused. He knew that sticking his nose into his daughter’s life after being absent for a good portion of her life could very well push her away. But he was still her father, and so he said. “Say, Taelia, remember when you were little, there was this boy, the blacksmith’s son, that you always wanted to play with?”
Taelia clearly didn’t expect a trip down the memory lane right now. Her eyebrows shot up and she carefully answered:
“Yes, I do.”
“And do you remember how you usually ran after him with a heavy stick?”
Taelia’s eyes widened, she straightened and crossed her arms.
“I don’t see how this…”
“And didn’t you tell me once that you did it because you liked him and he never paid attention to you?”
Taelia sputtered.
“That’s… That’s different! I’m not… That’s not why I…” She stopped talking and looked away, feeling a heat in her cheeks that was entirely different from the heat left by the chase.
There was no way this was what her father had just insinuated! There was no way she was falling for that lying piece of king! Oh, sure, he was charming, kind, and she felt warm in his presence, and maybe something fluttered in her stomach when his beautiful smile was directed at her…
Her thoughts came to an abrupt halt.
Oh. Oh damn.
When Bolvar saw the flurry of expressions running over Taelia’s face, he chuckled and said:
“For what it’s worth, my shining star, I think there’s little chance that our king’s attention won’t be on you at all times… Especially after that performance.”
He could only laugh, when his daughter shot him a murderous glare, then turned around and stomped away.
* * *
Anduin sagged against the wall and let out a huff of breath.
“Are you alive, my king?” Jaina, who still held him by his shoulder, sounded thoroughly amused. She teleported them to the same spot she hid Imareck and herself a few minutes before, and the paladin approached them both, holding a scrying stone in his hand. Anduin realized that the two saw everything that happened inside.
“Yes, auntie.” He flashed her a smile. “Thanks for the rescue.”
“Mhm. Our champion and I believed it would be for the best to keep you in one piece.” The mage paused, her eyes sparkling with mirth. “Although, I admit, for a time we didn’t know if you wanted to be saved… or captured by Taelia.”
If before Anduin was red-faced from all the running, now he was positively crimson, but for another reason completely.
“I…” he choked. “I don’t know what you’re insinuating.” His eyes widened, when Jaina and Imareck began softly chuckling. “I… I don’t!”
“If you say so, Anduin.” When Jaina looked at him kindly, he averted his eyes, gazing anywhere but at his friends.
He supposed it was fair – after all, his little (and he kept insisting that it was little) crush on Taelia was Stormwind’s worst kept secret. And even now, when he thought back to her chasing after him, her hair flying around her face and her eyes burning with righteous fury, he couldn’t help feeling something stir in his chest… and maybe somewhere lower.
He sighed and muttered:
“I should have kissed her.”
And then he flinched and swore loudly, when Jaina and Imareck, clearly having heard his admission, burst into laughs.