COINCIDENCE & KISMET: CHAPTER 9

THE PRICE

Enoki supposed Dalaran was probably considered beautiful by most people, and certainly amidst the frozen hellscapes of Northrend's glaciers and the warfronts within them, it was a beacon of civilization.

Where most places were cold or cramped or miserable in some other fashion, either from wandering flocks of undead, volatile wildlife, or just the brutal hospitality of the North, Dalaran was clean and warm and alive in ways that reminded everyone of the lives they left back on the Continents.

It also was the central hub for everyone and everything that was ferried to and around Northrend, and as such, it was fairly easy to find someone if you needed to. If they were still alive, they'd eventually end up back in Dalaran. So really, it wasn't the city's fault that Enoki didn't like it. No, that dubious honor sat with the brace on his left leg and the gnome who made it.

“And if you’d stop fucking up the cogwheels, then the pistons wouldn’t dig in!”

“Well if ya can’t keep da damn t’ings from slipping while I’m runnin’ den I might as well go back to da limp! I ain’t gonna get decapitated jus’ cause ya stupid gadget won’t hold together in a fight.”

Pidge glared angrily at Enoki, but experience had taught the warrior that it was a toothless threat. While the tiny Death Knight was a vulgar, vile little abomination with a hair trigger temper, she had one glaring weakness. And that weakness was Engineering.

It had become an obsession for her. The one vestige from her previous life that she could remember with crystal clarity. It was so strange that she wasn't on record anywhere as a genius class Engineer, given the things she'd been putting together over the last two years, but the Alliance's initial dismissal of her meant that those black-ops level skills were now more readily available. If you knew what to bribe her with and could manage being around the death knight for more than a few hours without ending up with an axe in the chest.

Enoki wasn’t entirely sure how he ended up Pidge's unofficial field tester, but at this point, he couldn’t really deny that this stupid brace she'd made was probably a big reason why he was still alive. For all the world it looked like a basic leg brace, but whatever sorcery Pidge had engineered into it over corrected for the crooked bone in his mangled leg and balanced it in such a way that when he moved, you would never know that he was technically lame unless you looked. It was a miracle of of modern technology, but it came with a price.

As with anything on a battlefield, be it armor, weapons, or support equipment, it needed maintaining. And no other engineer besides Pidge could fix it. Enoki knew this because he’d tried, multiple times, to find someone, ANYONE else who could service the damn thing. No matter how many different engineers he tried, orcish, goblin, troll, Forsaken, elf, hell, he’d even tried a few tauren ones once. No one could figure out how it was supposed to function, or even how it COULD function. Seeing that it WAS functioning just confused them further.

So every time he found himself in Dalaran, he would have to seek out Pidge to get it adjusted or tuned up, which inevitably lead to her wanting to upgrade it, and he couldn’t even say no. It was too useful. Given their day to day odds, throwing away an advantage, even if it was tied to a deranged little gremlin, was a stupid thing to do. And the fact that he was the only willing tester she had in the field afforded him certain privileges. Like having actual leverage to negotiate with.

“Hmph,” Pidge growled eventually, breaking the standoff she knew she’d already lost. “Fine, more reinforcement in the shock absorbers maybe…”

“Whatever ya gonna do, ya got ‘til tomorrow,” Enoki said, getting up and heading towards the door.

“Yeah yeah, fuck off, it’ll be done by then. Maybe that thing from Ulduar might be able to…” the death knight waved him off and devolved into the singular obsessive muttering that always accompanied her tinkering. Honestly the less Enoki knew about it the better. He had far more pleasant places, and company to keep than listening to Pidge ramble for the rest of the night.

Company like the woman sitting on the staircase across the street from the little alley where the Engineer’s emporium rented out workshops to the army, making baby faces and talking sweetly to a grotesquely oversized felhound while she waited for him.

Really, if anyone had told Enoki years ago what his love life would look like in a few years, he’d have laughed in their face and had them committed. Now though? It was hard to imagine it any other way. Especially when Teegan saw him emerging from the shadows of the alley and her eyes lit up and her grin got just a little bit wider as he came over to her.

“The conquering hero survives the lich’s lair!” she declared jokingly, and before Enoki could make a rebuttal she leaned over and grabbed a tusk and pulled him in for a quick kiss on the nose. “Still got both legs too.”

Enoki grinned and nuzzled her back gently before he pulled back out of her grip. Teegan pouted slightly, but let him go. Enoki still didn't like being the focus of outside attention, and brazen displays of affection often drew more eyes than he liked. Very much the opposite of Teegan, who didn’t give a flying fuck who saw what.

The fact that she was willing to tone it down for his sake made it just that little bit harder to pull away, so Enoki distracted himself with petting Luluum, who had taken a rather disturbing liking to him over the last two years. It really was like have a big spiky demon puppy, if big spiky demon puppies were the size of crocolisks and about as round as wine casks.

“Least fo’ now. Gotta pick it up tomorrow but consider ya personal Lich occupied ‘til at least den,” Enoki shrugged.

“Thank fuck. I do not want a repeat of Brewfest,” Teegan sighed not entirely in jest. Pidge had proven a valuable asset in terms of financial stability and support equipment, but the gnome was still a feral beast when it came to social settings, and if she wanted to find you, she would, regardless of your feelings on the matter. "So Xan said he was coming, right?"

Enoki shrugged as Teegan hopped down off the stairwell and they walked out of the alley back onto the main drag of Dalaran’s market street. "Last I heard. Had somethin' ta take care of fo' da tourney keepers, nothin' big, but he said he'd be dere latah. How 'bout A'm?"

"About the same. Some undead monstrosity needed its necromancer assassinated, but she promised she'd come. WHICH IS WEIRD BY THE WAY!" Teegan added that last part rather loudly to illustrate the point, her demeanor suddenly shifting into that exuberant flailing that often accompanied a rather frustrating point of conversation.

Enoki blinked, not entirely following this sudden segue. "A'm assassinatin' someone is weird?"

Teegan blew out a breath and shook her head. "No, I mean her promising to come to a party. Without coercion. Do you have any idea what I had to promise to get her to come with me to Brewfest that time? I fear the day she cashes in those favors."

Enoki laughed and patted the gnome sympathetically on the head. "Maybe she finally be admittin' she be needin' a break, jus' like ya always complainin' about."

“Please tell me you don’t actually believe that. You have met this woman. She wouldn’t follow good advice if it bit her on the ass and then gave her a road map,” Teegan sighed a bit more dramatically than was strictly necessary to illustrate the point.

Two years with Teegan had taught Enoki many things, including when exactly she was just rambling to fill the silence and when she actually was looking for input. This was definitely more the former, so instead of trying to come up with a response, Enoki just shrugged helplessly as they passed through the smithing area on their way towards the main road that would eventually lead them to the Flight master's landing.

It was a rare lull in hostilities after they had dealt with the…situation…in Ulduar. That whole mess had taken a lot longer to contain and a larger toll than expected. Morale was low and tensions were running high. How much the lingering insanity from Yogg-Saron and the nihilism of Alganon had to do with that was up for debate, but regardless, everyone was on edge. Not exactly the best state in which to stage a joint assault on the Lich King's fortress. So the faction leaders had come up with this grand idea to ease tensions and gently encourage friendly camaraderie in preparation for the imminent siege by way of an old fashioned Tournament. 

And now, after a month of building and resource relocation, a hearty helping of 'what the fuck are they thinking's, and one half of the actual tournament itself, that plan had gone up in flames. Well. Actually, it had gone up in undead spider warlocks. Lots of them.

So with the threat of Nerubians now dispersed and the tournament grounds thoroughly wrecked, the higher powers had shifted tactics, and decided instead to let the soldiers blow off some steam before the final push to the citadel in the time honored tradition of heavy drinking and reckless endangerment. Unsurprisingly, this went over much better than the idea of being forced to participate in some stuffy tournament.

Though really, Enoki wasn't entirely sure it was all that necessary. The blurring of faction lines had become more common as the war had dragged on, and there were a lot of people, at least in the vanguard where he and Teegan were stationed, willing to take advantage of the enforced truce between factions.

Upon their arrival here, Enoki had assumed, based on how things had been back on the Continents, that the line between Horde and Alliance would be just as bloody and etched in stone here in the North. He was pleasantly surprised to find that was not the case. There were the odd pockets of contention, most notably over control of the Wintergrasp towers, and the few that still clung to their blood feuds were always there, and always the loudest. By and large though, most everyone had gotten the memo that they were all fighting the same war on the same side.

Nothing like the end of the world to bring folks together.

Certainly made spending time with his girlfriend easier.

It still sounded surreal in his head when he thought about it sometimes, but at this point there was little to no reason to dance around the obvious. They'd spent the last two years 'accidentally' running into each other and 'catching up' across most of Northrend. Which, in their defense, did often involve talking long into the nights of the various things they had been up to since last they'd seen each other. Just…you know…naked and curled up next to each other after a few good rounds of screwing each other senseless.

Initially Enoki had tried, albeit not necessary that hard, to keep a low profile whenever they were together. Stick to Dalaran or other neutral areas and events, keep any familiarity behind closed doors where others couldn't see or hear. But Teegan was Teegan and she did not care about other people's opinions, even if they came from higher points of authority. In fact that seemed to make her somehow give even less fucks, if that were possible, and it was hard not to fall in with that blind confidence.

The fact that after awhile it became obvious that most of the vanguard either had no interest in what soldiers did in their off time or were doing something similar also eased a lot of Enoki's worry that there would be any real repercussions for their actions. More than once he had noticed a human or a night elf slipping out from someone's tent on the Horde side of the camps or someone creeping back from the Alliance side. Once he and Teegan had even run smack dab into a Blood Elf and a Draenei trying to sneak off together. The four of them had all looked at each other and then mutually agreed that they didn't see anything.

After awhile keeping up the pretense of unfamiliarity seemed rather silly, particularly when it became very clear very quickly that what had started as 'seeing if they made it to morning' had rapidly evolved into something more permanent.

At first it was little things, like wanting to know each other's favorites things, wanting to share something before truly being able to appreciate it, taking note when something was bothering one of them and wanting to offer comfort. A day when Enoki would notice Teegan was a bit rougher around the edges and would offer an ear when she needed someone to listen. A point where Enoki was just ready to give in because everything was horrible and it never ended, and an overly fat felhound would somehow find him with a slobber covered batch of flowers that had definitely been a part of someone's herb collection before Teegan had gotten her hands on them. Nights when they would spend it talking or ranting or sating themselves on each other so they could make it through the next day. Tidbits of each other given freely until finally one night when they were getting ready to go to their separate sides again Teegan had blurted out "I don't want you to go."

At the time he'd assumed she meant she wanted him to stay for a bit longer and had obliged her. After all, any extra time he could steal away from the horrors of war and spend instead with the woman he was pretty sure he was in love with was a trade he'd make in a heartbeat.

He learned a month later that she had meant to say "I love you" and had chickened out at the last second. He had been simultaneously so happy and yet so mad at her for not just telling him, but then realized at the same time that he hadn't exactly said anything either. It had been a hilariously awkward conversation, that one. But that about summed up their relationship. When one wasn't good at confronting feelings and the other wasn't good at using words, wires often got crossed, even if they were both on the same page about it.

One of these days they would figure it out, but in the mean time, they made sure to enjoy the moments they could take for themselves, which definitely included this party the whole of both armies were being encouraged, if not forced, to attend. Hence why he figured he'd just get the brace taken care of now because if he didn't, Pidge would have absolutely shown up at the party to accost him about it. He did not trust fate not to fuck with them. Not with their track record.

"Okay let's just…they're definitely together, right? We're acknowledging this, right?!"

Completely lost in thought as they wove through the traffic of Dalaran, Enoki thought he missed the first part of what Teegan had said and just gave her a confused look.

"Who's togetha?"

"Armesan and Xan! Who else do you think I'm talking about?" she said as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.

Enoki snorted. "Until ya asked me dat one time ta check in on 'im fo' 'er, I had no idea dey were even still talkin'. What makes ya t'ink I'd know anythin'?"

Teegan just rolled her eyes and slugged him gently in the knee affectionately. "He's your brother! You're supposed to get the juicy details!"

"I value mah life, thank ya very much."

"Pussy."

"Ya've nevah had siblin's," the warrior laughed, unphased by the insult. "Ya so interested, ask dem."

"I tried! All I got was the 'we're just friends' routine!"

"Den dey might ACTUALLY just be friends. An' even if dey are fuckin' around, ya know troll culture don't always make havin' sex wit' someone a big deal, right?"

"Give me some credit here," Teegan leveled a judgemental look up at Enoki. "Despite what my reputation may say, and my general dislike of linguistics, I do generally do my homework on other cultures if I'm likely to run into them. And be grateful I did, you do not want to know what kind of stereotypes Alliance-only brothels have about Trolls."

Enoki shook his head, knowing all too well the kind of racist shit that went on behind some of those faction or race-exclusive doors. He imagined the Alliance wasn't much different.

"But…" Teegan began, clicking a few fingernails together; a nervous tic she had whenever she had to put more personal thoughts into words. "I've known Stripes for…five, maybe six years now? In all those years I've never seen her this…alive. I think she's...happy."

"An' dat's gotcha worried 'bout 'er?"

"It's making me realize that I don't think I've ever actually seen her happy before!" Teegan said, her normally jovial voice now laced with a bit of sadness at the revelation. "Not like this, anyway. I didn't even know she could….anyway, this all started when she apparently started sneaking around with your brother and THAT'S why I can't quite buy this 'we're just friends who maybe like bumping uglies once in awhile' theory. Unless you've got some insights about Xan that I don't know about."

Enoki thought back to the last time he'd managed to sit down and chat with Xan for more than an hour, which had been maybe six months ago, and clicked his tongue against a tusk in thought. While you gained a unique perspective on someone when you spend most of your life around them, Enoki remembered Xan as several different things throughout his life, and if he were being honest, he hadn't really paid much attention to any of them. He had been an older brother first, complete with annoyance at having his little brothers trailing along after him all the time. Then a surrogate parent of sorts, after their parents had died, and Duma and Sai'in had fallen into his lap. Then their defacto leader when they were all grown, which shifted into a guardian after they lost Zorka.

And that whole time, Xan's personal life was always kept far and away from them. Details were always scarce, and even after they were all adults, at most they'd see him hanging around or chatting with some girl or another. He'd never introduce them as anything other than 'a friend', and they never seemed to stick around for long. When Sai'in had made the comment that he was flirting with Armesan back at Brewfest, that was the first time Enoki even considered the possibility that Xan might actually have a personal life since they were teenagers. It just didn't fit the picture of the brother he knew.

Which made him realize maybe he didn't really know his brother at all and that was kind of frustrating.

"Not really, but it ain't like he evah talked about 'is personal life ta begin wit," Enoki shrugged. He gave the gnome a curious side-eye, noting how her usual confident stride seemed just a bit more unsure. A bit more flustered. This was more than her just wanting to set her friend up on a date. "Why ya so hung up on 'em, though?"

"I'm not…it's just…." Teegan floundered a bit and then paused, her expression hardening a bit, as if she were trying to recall something rather distasteful. Enoki just raised an eyebrow at the warlock, until she acknowledged him and sighed. "You remember those mechagnomes we saw in the Tundra?"

Enoki thought back to those rancid hot springs and all those creepy mechagnomes that had looked and sounded so much like Teegan except as if someone had hollowed her out and left only a hard mechanical shell. He shuddered. "Hard ta forget dem. Freaky little tings. No offense."

Teegan completely missed the offered apology and just nodded in agreement. "Right! But that's my point. Freaky, emotionless, husks. And the whole time we were dealing with them, all I could think of was how much they reminded me of her when we met. It made me realize just how much she'd changed. It's so obvious now that I think about it…I can't imagine how she lived like that for so long. And I don't want her to ever feel like she has to go back to that."

Suddenly, it clicked. Teegan and Armesan's relationship had always been a bit of an enigma to Enoki, but now he realized why it had seemed so oddly familiar. "She really be like ya sistah, ain't she? Like fo' real?"

Teegan sighed, but her posture slumped a bit and she nodded. "I joke about it a lot, calling her that, but it's truer than you know. She's the closest thing I have ever had to family worth keeping, stuck with me through things I probably wouldn't have stuck with me through. I would do anything for her, and that includes watching out for her even if she doesn't think she needs it." Teegan said quietly, in that earnest way that Enoki learned only surfaced when all the layers of snark and cynicism were peeled back, but very suddenly she shot him a look with a bit of her usual smirk. "But don't ever tell her that. She'll get all wise-old-elf on me."

"She is an old elf though."

"And old elves get stuck in their ways even when they try not to. It's why I always tried to drag her out to bars and parties, just…to keep her feet on the ground and remind her what it's like to live a little with us mortals. And now I see that even THAT wasn't enough. But whatever is going on between her and Xan? That might be," she said with that tone of fond aggravation that so often accompanied conversations about her best friend. "And while I may not know your brother all that well, from what you've told me he isn't exactly one for hanging around someone he doesn't like."

Enoki had to cede that point. "Ya ain't gonna be able ta dupe 'em inta anythin' though," he pointed out, reminded of all the escapades they'd gotten up to as children and that at no point had they been able to pull one over on Xan unless he'd let them. "Dey gonna see any set up ya try comin' from a mile away."

"Annoyingly so," Teegan grumbled. "But you can see the problem now, right? You're pretty sure you know they're into each other, but you don't want to say anything in case you're wrong or one of them isn't on board, but you don't want to NOT say anything in case they're both just too damn scared to admit that they fell for someone while the world's on fire?"

Enoki sighed and nodded. "I kinda preferred when I thought ya just had an unhealthy obsession wit ya friend's sex life."

There was an adorable snort of indignation and a rougher shove as the gnome tried to cover up the laugh. "There are methods to my madness," she declared haughtily. "I was planning to just tie Stripes to a chair so she couldn't sneak away from the party but then she agreed to come without even blinking so now I have no idea what's going to happen when we get there."

"If we get dere," Enoki chimed in. From his higher vantage point, he could see that the slow down in traffic wasn't actually abating, and lead directly to the flight landing. "Looks like we ain't da only ones headin' out."

"Oh come on, really?" Teegan moaned, and looped around behind Enoki. He felt the familiar tug as Teegan used the weapons crossed over his back as an impromptu ladder until she was perched on his shoulder and could see properly. "REALLY?!"

Enoki shifted slightly so she could better balance on his pauldron and shrugged with the other shoulder. It looked like there was some argument going on between a tauren and the flight master and people were being corralled into a line while it was sorted out.

"Ungh, this is going to take forever," the warlock groaned, draping herself dramatically over Enoki's shoulder. "Fucking Pidge and her godsdamned engineering prowess. I'm blaming her if we end up missing this party."

"Could always take dat dirty gryphon of yours," Enoki offered.

"It barely seats one gnome, and your windrider is still dead," Teegan replied seamlessly.

"Da bronze drake dat ate 'em apologized an' offered ta be a replacement fo' awhile," Enoki volleyed back. "He'd probably get 'ere befor' too long. I could catch up."

"Ooooooor..." Teegan's voice drawled, having dropped a few octaves and taken on a mischievous lilt. Enoki glanced out of the corner of his eye and caught a glimpse of Teegan's cheshire cat grin that often preceded them getting into all sorts of trouble. "We could kill some time until the line eases up."

Judging by the familiar teasing scratches of nails behind his ear, Enoki had a pretty good idea what she had in mind to kill time, and it definitely sounded more appealing than waiting in a crowded rotunda for a few hours.

"Whacha got in mind?"

"You, me, and that dark alley full of crates we passed back there?"

Enoki couldn't help but snort, even though the grin on his face meant he was absolutely going to go along with this. “We’d fuckin’ destroy dose t’ings.  At least pick some place wit class, woman.”

Teegan's eyes flashed playfully as she pushed back in a way that was definitely meant to entice him and hopped down to the ground again. "What, you're telling me you've never just said fuck it and nailed someone up against a wall when beds weren't available?"

"An' you have?" Enoki shot back.

Teegan grinned over her shoulder as she turned to start walking towards the aforementioned alley. "It wasn't a wall."

Enoki blinked but couldn't help but blush a bit at the mental image that went along with that statement. "Ain't you just a fuckin' romantic," Enoki growled, but the edge in his voice definitely gave away that he was very much into this idea.

"Well?" Teegan grinned, offering a her hand and a promise of other things to Enoki.

The troll couldn't help but take it, all worries of brothers and sisters and the end of the world temporarily forgotten in favor of something better.

And Enoki was right. They fucking destroyed those crates.

---

Xan realized he might have a problem.

It wasn’t the endless undead, it wasn’t the necromancers, or the underground nests of undead spider warlocks that apparently just liked to spring up everywhere. Not the werewolves, or Old Gods, or insane blue dragons.  It wasn’t even the fucking Lich King.

No, his problem had long ears and blue hair and wore dark assassin’s leathers.  His problem was the piercing silver eyes he couldn’t get out of his head, the gentle glances she sent his way when she thought he wasn’t looking. The way some part of him would snap and snarl and try to keep her near him just a bit longer every time they parted ways. Gods and Loa, he didn’t even need to be fucking her to illicit these feelings, just seeing her walking around the shared encampments or Dalaran, just seeing that she was still alive would make his heart speed up in ways that it wasn't supposed to. 

He blew out a frustrated breath, watching as the fog of it dissipated into the open air of the busted up tournament grounds and leaned heavily against the pile of debris that had been piled up near the Horde Flight Masters. He almost wished taking out those wannabe spies that the cultists had sent to try and infiltrate the tournament high grounds had taken longer, maybe the extra time might've helped clear his head.

But then again, maybe not. The sun was pretty close to setting which meant things were more or less getting started and he was already technically late. Taking even longer wouldn't have likely made much of a difference, even though Enoki and Teegan still hadn't arrived, and Loa knew where or when Armesan would show up. Her last marker had put her down in the south of Icecrown, so not a world away, but this was an assassination job, and those could sometimes run long if anything unexpected came up, which meant he had plenty of time to just sit here with nothing to distract him save for watching the grounds slowly fill up with soldiers.

Xan still wasn't sure letting inter-faction troops get absolutely shit-faced mere days before a siege operation was a good idea, no matter how little the faction divide seemed to matter these days, but he couldn't really say much without being a bit of a hypocrite. Not when he fully intended to take advantage of this very bad idea. It had been two long years since they'd been drafted, full of world ending horrors, cosmic terrorism, and every conceivable disaster you could think of rearing its ugly head.

However, despite all the bad, those two years had come with just as much good. Enoki shaking off the shadows of Zul'Gurub and finding a much better balance between the rage and calm that he had wildly swung between since then. And if he didn't have a wife by then end of this war Xan would eat his eyepatch.

Sai'in and Dotolo working through the traumas of Zul'Gurub and Light's Hope, in between losing their godsdamned minds over Sohto's latest shenanigans. They had roots now, a place where they could finally figure out who they were after all they had endured, and where they could raise their son free of the stigma that had haunted Sai'in's steps since birth.

Duma actually finding a niche for himself where he thrived, freeing himself from other people's purposes, allowing him to mellow out significantly as a result. Give him a few more years, and he might be running the entire logistics and legal division of the Merchant's Guild in central Kalimdor.

Xan realizing that his siblings were all managing to put themselves back together and didn't necessarily need him to watch their backs anymore, while skulking and stabbing his way through the Lich King's forces with the best friend he'd ever had. A best friend who had become far, far more important to him over this last year since he and Armesan had started…whatever this was.

Technically, it was just two friends having sex with each other out of convenience and mutual benefit. An I-scratch-your-back-you-scratch-mine scenario. She was gorgeous, deadly, willing, a trusted friend despite her people’s allegiance, and they were stuck out in the field more often than not, fighting tooth and nail to make sure they and every other living thing on this planet could keep breathing the next day. 

Except if she was just his best friend who occasionally offered a good ride then it wouldn’t bother him when they'd go for weeks without seeing other. He wouldn’t miss the way she’d play with the jewelry in his braids after sex.   He wouldn’t miss her calm voice asking about his life, or telling him tales of ancient Kalimdor.   He wouldn't wonder what came after this, and have trouble imagining his life without her in it.

But he did. Often. Especially once he started trying to think about what he'd even do with himself if he no longer needed to play the role of parent-protector.

How ironic, of the two of them, he was the one getting too attached.   The worst part was that sometimes she showed signs of getting just as attached as he was, always finding sly little excuses to mess with him, touch him, tease him, more than simply to rile him up. And every now and then it seemed like something would slip through. A smile that was less wicked than her usual teasing looks. A gentle touch that didn't quite fit with their roughhousing and lingered far longer than was necessary. The way there was almost no hesitation anymore when he'd ask her something personal and she'd simply chuckle and indulge him. Things that felt more earnest than just two friends fucking around.

Which was a problem when that was all they were supposed to be.

It was especially a problem now, because tonight was it, and they all knew it. Knew this very well could be the last time any of them saw each other if their luck finally ran out. That was why the four of them had agreed to meet and spend one of their last guaranteed nights of relative freedom in good company and questionable booze. But the greedy part of him was not content to just leave well enough alone and enjoy the night for what it was. It wanted as much of her as he could get, and those little tells kept nagging at him to reach for more.

Gods and Loa, what was wrong with him?

Ya really want the answer to that? Xan's more cynical side piped up and the troll just growled irritably. 

Time for a distraction, and since he hadn't run into anyone yet, he might as well wait for them where there was a higher chance of focusing on something besides this hole he'd dug for himself.

As he moved away from the Flight Masters, Xan noticed someone had pulled out drums from…somewhere and that had prompted the soldiers who had musical talent to join in and as a result there was a full on dance floor now forming near the towering bonfire. Peppered around the tables in the middle of everything there were small pockets of people, some drinking, some gambling, some arguing loudly over who’s tactics were better while doing one, the other, or both.  The few 'fights', such as they were, were more duels, and either ended amicably or were forcibly ended by the few tournament guards tasked with keeping things from getting lethal. Those that tried to start something serious were promptly sheeped and sent to ‘The Pen’ to think about what they’d done.  There were a fair chunk of sheep in there at the moment, and Xan was pretty sure only half of them were actual sheep.

After a few moments of consideration, he opted for the tables with the Draenei and orc arguing about weapons, and it wasn't just because he spotted Armesan sitting nearby, looking particularly haggard and annoyed as the two got louder and more animated about their argument.

“Dis seat taken?” he grinned deliberately invading her personal space as he sat down.

Judging by the expression on her face she hadn't realized she wasn't the first of their group to arrive, and had been readying either a withering death glare or a throwing knife, but when she saw who it was, she faltered. To her credit she kept her reaction mostly schooled, but there was a moment where her eyes went wide in surprise and that genuine smile that seemed to only show up specifically when she saw him started creeping in before she remembered where she was.

"When did you get here?"

"Just arrived," Xan replied, and quickly changed the topic before she could see through the lie. "Did da job go dat bad? Ya look like ya ready ta kill dese two."

"Job went fine, just had to talk to Shaw before I got here."

Xan couldn't help but chuckle. She and the Alliance Spymaster always seemed to have some sort of disagreement or beef going on, it was a wonder she still tolerated working for the human. He would bet that if her people weren't tied so heavily to the Alliance she would happily toss Shaw to the wolves given the chance.

"Have you see Teegan or Enoki yet?"

Xan shook his head. "Probably got sidetracked again."

That drew a rather amused laugh from the elf. "You know she's probably going to ask him to marry her, before this war is over, right?"

"Makes findin' excuses fo' me ta stick around all da easier, den." Xan shrugged nonchalantly.

"Since when do you need excuses?" Armesan chuckled, but there was a hint of curiosity in it, and she raised an eyebrow at him slightly.

Xan just cocked his head in confusion as that familiar sense of this being more than just playful banter settled in. "Ya tellin' me I don't?"

Armesan's expression mirrored the shift in the tone, smirk smoothing out as she studied him, but anything she might've said was rudely interrupted by the braying of the arguing pair that had steadily been getting louder by the word.

"…just saying, what's the point of daggers if you're not just trying to inject poison or sneak attack? They lack the reach and they barely block anything heavier than a rapier," the orc said loudly enough to draw an irritated glance, crossing his arms at the draenei he was arguing with.

"And a long sword doesn't have any drawbacks?" the bulky draenei shot back, his voice rife with disbelief. "In close quarters combat you cannot pull your weapon back far enough to get the pointy end into your enemy. Daggers offer speed and precision. With those, strength is not the deciding factor."

It was almost comical how the two rogues almost simultaneously turned to glare at them, Armesan's lip curling back a bit in irritation before she turned her back to them in a futile attempt to tune them out. As it was, it was nigh impossible to ignore them as their 'discussion' had attracted more spectators who were trying to add in their two cents as well.

Xan supposed it wasn't entirely the orc and draenei's fault; this probably wasn't exactly the best place to have private conversations. Didn't make him any less annoyed though, nor did it stymie the urge to throw a rock at them to get them to shut up.

"And when a foe is armored?"

"You do not try to hack through heavy plate with a dagger. There are more efficient means of attack."

"Ha! See! With the right sword, you can. No need to risk getting up close and personal with a if you have the reach. And swords can be just as precise as daggers!" the orc crowed, jabbing a finger at the draenei.

The draenei chuckled and raised an eyebrow at the orc curiously. "Oh really? Maybe we should have a contest then! Daggers versus swords!"

"With your polearm loving drunk ass?" Sword Orc snorted dismissively. "Ask the rogues skulking over by the cards."

"Spoken like one who knows he is wrong," Dagger Draenei taunted smugly. A few of his companions snickered as Sword Orc's face got red at the accusation.

"Watch your mouth goat!" the orc snarled. "Fine, find me a dagger rogue not busy cheating some schmuck out of their paycheck and I'll play your game."

There was some mumbling from the Alliance as the draenei scanned the immediate area, until it landed on their table. As Armesan was fastidiously trying to ignore them, Xan saw it coming before she did.

"Let us see. Someone here has to be a dagger…aha! You!"

There was a brief beat of absolute silence until Armesan realized that everyone was suddenly looking at her, because the draenei had singled her out. Blinking rapidly in confusion, she looked around to make sure there wasn't someone else he might've been indicating.

"Me?"

"Daggers versus swords! You are a dagger rogue, yes?"

The night elf looked down at the weapons at her sides and the myriad of small knives she had visible on her armor, and then gave the draenei a look that clearly said she thought he must be an idiot.

"There you have it, I have found our dagger rogue!" Dagger Draenei crowed, taking her silence as an affirmation, and indicating the baffled night elf as his designated champion.

Sword Orc snorted. "Even if it's some prissy Alliance elf." the orc sneered, giving Armesan a dismissive once over quickly and then scanning the crowd. Xan could hear the slight grind of her teeth as the elf's glare shifted over to the orc. "Alright, who here's a sword rogue?!"

In hindsight, maybe Xan shouldn't have laughed quite so loud, but the idea of Armesan getting roped into the equivalent of a weapon-fanatic's dick measuring contest was just way too funny. She raised an eyebrow coolly at him when she heard the laughter, and smoothed her expression out into that aloof glare of superiority night elves wore so often.

"Oh you think this is funny, sword rogue?" she said loud enough for the crowd to hear. Before Xan realized what she was doing, she had stood up and reached over his shoulder to grab the handle of one of his swords and yanked it free from its holster. "Let's see how you handle a short blade, hmm?"

She pulled one of her daggers from its sheath and flipped it, shoving the hilt almost into Xan's face in challenge. It was the troll's turn to blank in surprise, glancing between the sword in her hand, the dagger in his face, and the last night elf in existence he would have ever thought would be willing to play along with this, let alone drag him into it too. The longer Xan sat there staring dumbly at the dagger, the louder the murmur of interest from the crowd became as they waited to see if they would get their contest or if someone else was going to be sent to The Pen.

After what seemed like a long time, but was more likely only a few seconds of bafflement at this development, Xan decided to play along. He flashed a few hand gestures covertly in the basic rogue sign language so only she could see as he stood up. I thought you liked how I handled my short blade.

He saw the quirk of a smile and a flash of that fire in her eyes that he loved so much as she let him take her weapon.

"Be seemin' a bit unfair, don'cha t'ink?" Xan mused out loud, trying to put on the cocky facade for the spectators.

"Afraid of a prissy Alliance elf? Don't worry, I won't bite." she shot back with equal attitude as they exchanged the twin of their weapons. She added with a few sly hand signals, Unless you want me to.

The growl in Xan's throat might not have been threatening in the conventional sense, but without context no one noticed and assumed is was a noise of challenge.

"We have ourselves a contest!" Sword Orc crowed, motioning towards the little dueling arenas across the yard. There was a rush of cheers and jeers as the little gathering of random soldiers who had been privy to this whole exchange suddenly got up and went to go start clearing the space, leaving Xan and Armesan lagging behind under the pretext of adjusting to their new weapons and sizing each other up.

"So do ya actually know how ta use dose t'ings?" Xan asked quietly as soon as everyone was out of reasonable earshot.

Armesan grinned and spun his sword around expertly in one hand. "I'm sure I can figure it out. You sure your big mitts can handle those tiny knives?"

Xan snorted in response and flipped one easily to demonstrate. "Ya know we gonna have ta make it look real, right?"

"So don't pull punches like you do whenever we spar," she said simply.

"I was talkin' 'bout you," Xan shot back.

"You think I'm holding back?"

"I know ya do."

Armesan snorted a bit, but her grin said he was right. She gave him a thoughtful look. "Hmmm, so what do I get when I win?"

"Dat confident are ya?" Xan laughed, but raised an eyebrow at her curiously. "Whaddya want?"

"I'll let you know when I win," she grinned lopsidedly at him.

"An' if I win?"

"What do you want?"

What indeed.

"You. Til da sun comes up, ya be mine. No excuses needed," he said before he could think better of it.

There it was again. A slight pause and both eyebrows shooting up before she could force her expression into a more neutral smirk that said she was genuinely pleased and maybe a bit excited.

"Well that certainly sounds interesting," she grinned just a little more easily as she started walking over to the little arena. "Maybe I will pull my punches, then."

---

"Ya call dat pullin' ya punches?" Xan hissed, wiping the trail of blood from the split lip where Armesan had whacked him with the hilt of one of his swords.

The Night Elf in question just smiled in the most guilty way possible as they continued to circle each other. "I thought you wanted a fair fight?"

They were well into this duel now, and had long ago lost count of the supposed score, though occasionally he could hear shouts from the crowd in one of their favors. He wasn't really paying attention to the sidelines anymore, instead focusing entirely on Armesan and watching for her next move.

Xan wasn't going to lie, he hadn't actually expected her to be THIS good with swords given she heavily favored daggers. Besides the latest bruise, she'd landed a few good hits that definitely would leave a mark if he weren't a troll. Not that she was untouched. There were a few knicks in her armor where Xan had gotten her good, and her hair was now lopsided thanks to a sizable chunk that had gotten taken off by accident.

But by the loa was this FUN. Most of their previous sparring matches were to either work out some tactic to deal with the vast array of undead combat types, or to practice. Never had they really gone all out against each other like this. Whatever advantage he had on her in strength and reach, she had on him in speed and flexibility, and it was one thing to work with it on the field or see it used on other people. It was a whole other thing to pit the two against each other, and it was becoming increasingly difficult to say who would come out the winner.

His eyes had drifted to her feet for a fraction of a second as he started pacing to match Armesan's prowl, and he almost didn't catch it in time, because in that fraction of a second she had launched herself at him, a sword swing aimed for his side.

Instinct took over and he barely managed to dodge the blow. As he did, he saw her other hand coming in for a cross swing and he quickly dropped one dagger and lashed out to grab her wrist to intercept the blow. Risky, but given it was her offhand, chances were good he could overpower her before the sword would hit anything.

He tightened his grip on her wrist when she tried to pull free and get enough space to free the arm that was trapped under the one Xan held.

"Gotta watch dat when ya get in close, ya know," Xan purred. He saw her smile at him, and definitely not in a nice way.

In one deceptively fluid move, Armesan had twisted herself under the arm that was immobilized, taking with her Xan's arm, which definitely did not bend that way. A sharp pain told him to release her or risk dislocating his elbow, so he obeyed and dropped his hold, whirling around just in time to parry the kick she had aimed at his unprotected back.

Thwarted, she slid back out of his range before he could make another move. It allowed him a chance to pick up the dropped dagger, but it meant the swipe he'd made at her foot hit nothing. Gods and loa was she fast.

Swings with the elven daggers, no matter how smooth they were mainly hit nothing but air and the currents left in Armesan's wake. She kept dodging and weaving with that damnable speed of hers, his only openings coming from the heavier weapons she wielded, but even those were few and far between.

"You mean like how you keep swinging instead of stabbing?" she volleyed coyly, testing him with a few swipes that he easily batted aside. "You should try thrusting once in awhile."

"Ya mean like dis?" Xan laughed as he suddenly shifted and lunged, catching her off guard enough to sneak past her deflective blocks with his reach. She jerked back on reflex, too late realizing that was exactly what Xan was counting on as the kick he had aimed at her side connected before she could get her guard back up.

One of his swords went clattering to the side, and she caught herself before she hit the ground full force, but before she could get up Xan pounced on her, grabbing the hand that was no longer armed and pinning it behind her, using his body weight to keep her down and her other arm and weapon trapped between her chest and the ground.

"Or mo' like dis?" the troll whispered, leaning down towards her ear so he was sure she could hear him over the din of the crowd jeering. He rolled his hips just enough to make his point and purred in approval when she wiggled underneath him in a way that felt way too good to be publicly decent. "Give up yet?"

The only warning he had was a chuckle from beneath him. Very suddenly his grip on her pinned arm slipped, her arm twisting further up her back and loosening his hold just enough for her to move. She pushed off the ground with her right leg, no longer fully pinned by Xan's weight as he'd scrambled to readjust. It was just enough to roll over and free her other arm. She jerked it back hard, elbow slamming into Xan's stomach with enough force to knock him the rest of the way off.

Now completely free and with Xan momentarily stunned, Armesan quickly rolled so their positions were now reversed, grabbing the sword that had been underneath her as she did. Now it was Xan on his back with an arm trapped underneath him, her knees pressing hard into his sides to keep him from rolling over as she held the edge of the sword a hair's breath from his exposed throat.

"Did I forget to mention I'm double jointed in that arm?" she whispered sweetly. "Now what was that about giving up?"

To the world around them, this fight between two rogues of the opposite faction was over, with the night elf pinning the troll with her weight and a one handed sword leveled across his throat. To the two rogues, it had been a dance, and this was the part where they were supposed to spin away and take a bow.

Except he couldn't.

Not because she was sitting on top of him, he could very easily roll her off him. Nor because of the blade at his throat, his tusks were long enough to be dangerously close to being able to stab her if he moved his head to the side.

No, he couldn't move because she was smiling that relaxed, elated smile that seemed reserved only for him, and her face was so close to his, and almost as if she wasn't even aware of the shift in her balance she leaned down and forward and suddenly Xan wasn't lying on the ground in the middle of ruined tournament grounds, surrounded by gawking spectators. Instead there were papers and a desk and her legs around his waist and her lips and her tongue dancing and demanding on his and it was all he could do to remind himself that they were in the middle of a crowd that had doubled in size since they'd started this duel, and that kissing her in front of them all to let them all know she was his was a bad idea.

Thankfully, before he could do anything he might regret, the cosmos had mercy on him. There was a furious scream from somewhere behind the crowd and as one almost everyone turned and immediately bolted, just as a tauren woman crashed through the spectators, skidding directly towards where the two rogues were on the ground.

The distraction did its job and the spell was broken, and Armesan almost instinctively reeled back, pulling the sword with her and lurching to her feet as she spun away to dodge a flailing hoof. Xan only managed to scramble out of range in the opposite direction, still sprawled out on the ground. That was when he realized that the rest of their group had arrived, and had started a party of their own.

"How's THAT for short stuff, BITCH?!"

It was like a slow motion train wreck in that you knew what was coming and yet you could not for the life of anything, get out of the way.

Like Kil'jaeden himself rising from the depths of hell, Teegan came into view, cackling atop her Felguard's massive shoulder, one hand gripping the grotesquely oversized horn as she jabbed the other at the tauren woman who had unceremoniously been ejected into the little arena. She had a manic grin on her face and her eyes were blazing in the way that meant she had at least three other demons summoned and on a leash just waiting for the command to pounce. Xan also noted she had a bit of a bloody nose and had a feeling he knew where it had come from.

Teegan's target slowly got to her feet, shaking her head to dispel the likely stars she was seeing, and glared back at the gnome.

"Little bitch, I'll gut you for that!"

"Bring it on Saddlebags!"

It was quite magnificent, the way the tauren woman charged headlong back into the fray, dodging the swing from the Felguard's axe and managing to shrug off the shadowbolt, mostly, only to get clotheslined by a felhound that darted out of a portal that manifested right next to the woman's face.

Somewhere between the tauren wrestling the felhound off her, and Teegan getting tackled by the impressive leap from the tauren woman before the warlock literally set herself on fire to get the tauren off her, Xan finally managed to bring himself to a sitting position.

"Nevah in a thousnd years did I think I'd find ya willingly rollin' around in da snow. Did ya lose a bet o' somethin'?""

Xan shot a glace off to his left and snorted when he saw Enoki standing not too far away, enjoying the throwdown happening about ten feet away from them.

"Got bored waitin' fo ya ta show up. Da hells took ya so long?"

Enoki at least had the decency to look slightly apologetic. "Dere was a bit of a hold up in Dalaran an' we got…"

"Sidetracked?" Xan finished smugly for his little brother. Enoki simply shrugged, entirely unrepentant. There was a loud explosion of fire and wood as a table exploded. Xan indicated Teegan who was lobbing both imps and chaos bolts now, while the tauren barrelled through them all in an attempt to reach the gnomish woman. "Ain'cha gonna save 'er?"

"Don't gotta," Enoki smirked.

Sure enough, the tauren had managed to shrug off the magic, though not without some visible scuffing, and had kept well out of range of the Felguard that couldn't quite get in close without also beheading its mistress. What she had failed to realized was the shadow that had looked sort of like another tauren behind her…was not another tauren. But a second Felguard.

Needless to say, the fight was over very quickly once people moved out of the way and the twin behemoths converged on the woman. One managed to grab her in a pin while the other knocked her out with the flat of its axe.

"AND THAT, BITCH, IS WHY YOU DON'T MESS WITH TEEGAN, MOTHERFUCKIN', FIZZWIDGET!"

The crowd erupted into a chorus of cheers and jeers, dividing mostly down faction lines but the general mood was not too dissimilar to that which had surrounded Xan and Armesan's duel. This was a party, they were soldiers, and they were blowing off steam here rather than on the battlefield. So long as no one was seriously injured or in any real danger, it was all fair game. A bloody nose and a concussion were simply part of the evening. And it wasn't like the tournament grounds weren't already in shambles, what were a few more fires and splintered tables?

"Da fuck was dat all about?"

"Lady tried hittin' on meh wit Teegan within earshot an' wouldn't take no fo' an answer," Enoki snorted, and held out a hand to help his brother to his feet. "Now ya know what happens when ya make too many short jokes at 'er expense."

"Da botha ya be unhinged as hell. Can't go one festival without startin' shit." Xan laughed, taking the offered hand.

"Eh, 's why we work. An' dere ain't no rules about no weapons dis time," Enoki shrugged, but the grin on his face was one of pride. "But…uh…speakin' of 'unhinged', what da hells was dat all about?"

The warrior pointedly glanced down at the dagger that was still in Xan's hand. Armesan's dagger.

"What? We were REALLY bored waitin' fo' you two ta show up." Xan shrugged, tucking the dagger under his belt and grabbing the other from where it had landed earlier. A quick scan saw that during the tussle Armesan had vanished, but given that Teegan had disappeared back into the crowd and both Felguards were gone, it was a safe bet she was with her.

"An' ya convinced 'er ta let ya fight wit her daggers?"

"Dis," Xan waved Armesan's dagger vaguely before sheathing it as well. "Was not my idea."

Enoki blinked. "Wait, so A'm gave ya her…we talkin' 'bout da same woman?"

Xan raised an eyebrow at his brother suspiciously. "Ya?"

"Holy shit, Teegan was right."

"Right 'bout what?"

"'bout you two," Enoki said simply, waving a finger between Xan and the daggers on his belt.

"What 'bout us?" Xan's voice had an edge of warning in it, but more curious than irritated.

"Dat ya be a lot closah den ya let on," Enoki folded his arms across his chest and grinned. "Dat ya changed."

"Ya girlfriend needs a hobby," Xan shot back easily, scowling slightly. He hadn't thought they were being that obvious.

"Ya two are her hobby."

"She needs a bettah hobby."

Enoki scowled. "Ya know, jus' because ya be olda den us dun mean ya can't talk ta us. We ain't kids no mo'."

"I'm aware."

"Meanin' ya CAN be honest wit me once in awhile."

"I been honest wit, ya, remembah? Ma an' Dad? Ya an' Zorka nearly tore mah head off ovah it," Xan said pointedly. "Besides, since when do ya care 'bout my personal life?"

"Since I realized dat we be goin' inta a fight we got a real chance a not comin' back from an' dat maybe I dun really know mah bruddah as well as I thought," Enoki said firmly, but his expression softened some. "An' maybe I wanna try an' fix dat befo' it be too late."

Xan blinked a bit in surprise and a bit of the defensiveness faded. Enoki was rarely this blunt, often preferring to just let others talk or only offer up small interjections to keep the conversation going. If he ever had something serious he wanted to say he often took a roundabout way to get to the point. And he almost always preferred saying nothing rather than bringing up the grim reality. After a moment of consideration, Xan had to chuckle a bit. He wasn't the only who had changed, it seemed.

"What's so funny?" Enoki asked when he heard his brother laugh.

"Jus' noticin' how much a' Teegan's rubbed off on ya," Xan mused, clapping his brother on the shoulder. "Ya nevah really spoke ya mind all dat much befo'."

Enoki shrugged helplessly. "Da woman kinda be a force of nature, ya either roll wit' it o' ya get outta da way," he said, then gave his brother a serious look. "So which is it fo' you? Rollin' wit' it or takin' cover?"

Xan clicked his tongue against a tusk in thought. He knew which one he wanted, but he also knew that wasn't the one they had agreed to, and if he couldn't have the one he wanted, he'd cling for dear life to what he had.

"Mighta done da dumb thing an' tried fo' both," Xan sighed as the two of them turned to find where the girls had wandered off to, Enoki badgering him the entire while.

---

"Another round for the Heroes of the Alliance!"

"We're not-"

"HELL YEAH! "

Teegan grinned at the sour look her best friend shot her when she interrupted the night elf. The draenei grinned and yelled over something to the barkeep. Teegan didn't particularly pay attention to what, she just knew that it meant booze she didn't have to pay for.

She hadn't meant to get into a fight almost as soon as they'd landed. But as soon as she'd managed to get over to the Horde Flight master and seen the tauren woman very aggressively throwing herself at Enoki, she…might've said a few things that weren't the most diplomatic. In her defense, Teegan felt she held it together pretty well, given how many racist slurs the tauren threw at her, but when she started insulting Enoki too, well, even Teegan's patience had limits.

And maybe the Felguards had been a bit overkill, but there was no better way to keep the creeps away than to let them know exactly what they were messing with. And hey! They had ended up finding Armesan and Xan as a result.

Well, Teegan assumed Xan was here. She'd only glimpsed Armesan briefly turning around from her vantage atop her Felguard when she'd launched the tauren into the crowd, but the elf had been on top of someone in that ring, and had found her not too long after the tauren had been carted away with two very Xan-looking swords strapped to her back instead of her normal daggers.

Enoki had also vanished which further cemented the "Xan was here" theory. Confident that they'd find them sooner or later, Teegan had opted to take the opportunity to enjoy the fruits of victory, which were taking the form of shots from some random draenei and a scowly orc. And potentially corner her best friend about this duel that apparently Armesan had won, according to the second round of drinks.

"You are going to be passed out or dead before midnight at this pace," Armesan chided gently, eyeing Teegan's growing pile of empty shot glasses.

The gnomish woman waved off the night elf's concerns. "Nah, I'm good. Summoning the two beefy boys always has weird side effects, but one of them is that my liver is a fucking GOD! I am unkillable for the next few hours!"

Armesan merely shook her head in defeat. "Why do you know that?"

"I'll let Enoki tell that story," Teegan grinned wolfishly, waggling her eyebrows. "That was such a fun night, he's such a lightweight. And fucking hells does he get handsy when he's drunk, but the things he can do with just three fingers-"

"Teegan. If I start drinking these shots, will you stop attempting to tell me about your sex life?" the night elf abruptly cut in, holding up one of the random glasses in front of her. Teegan grinned and gestured to the glass without a word, to which Armesan immediately downed the contents in one quick gulp.

"So anyway, three fingers, right?" the gnome immediately began again.

"Why are you like this?!" Armesan scowled, but lifted up another glass and started drinking, just to make a point. "I do not need to know what kind of debauchery you two have been up to for the last two years."

"Are you jeeeeeealous?" Teegan sing-songed, but eyed the swords crossed over Armesan's shoulders deviously. "Or are you getting ideas because those aren't the only swords of Xan's you've been handling lately?"

Teegan would look back on this memory many times with profound pride and accomplishment for years to come. One moment Armesan was her usual proud elegant self, casually sipping her glass of whatever, and the next there was the distinct sound that only came from someone suddenly choking on a drink and almost spitting it all over the table. She clamped a hand over her mouth to try and salvage some dignity and shot the gnome a venomous glare; though its effectiveness was greatly diminished by the dribbles of liquor dripping from behind her hand and the darker flush of color in Armesan's face and the tips of her ears as the night elf choked on her drink.

"Oooooh my gods, you totally are! I knew it! You sly minx you!" Teegan giggled wildly, completely unphased by the death glare coming from the choking night elf.

"Teegan, I swear to every god, goddess, and otherworldly entity that has ever given Azeroth a side-eye..." the rogue coughed, clearly trying to get the burn out of her sinuses.

“I'm so proud of you, finally following in my footsteps." Teegan mockingly wiped an invisible tear from her eye. "So do rogues actually 'do it from behind' like the saying goes? Gimme the deets!"

Armesan just gave Teegan an exasperated and thoroughly confused look as she regained her composure. "What even-What the fuck are 'deets'?! Where do you find these words?!"

"Details! This is how it works, Stripes. It's called girl talk. While our boys are gone, we get to spill the tea," Teegan explained, sliding one her glasses over to replace the one Armesan had all but spit out.

"'Our boys'?"

"Yeah. You know, tall, red, and toothy? Very tall, in your case."

Armesan just waved her hand offhandedly. "We're just…very good friends."

“Very good friends who plow each other.”

"I cannot believe I have to explain the concept of friends-with-benefits to you, of all people."

Teegan snorted and rolled her eyes. "Friends-with benefits, sure, Stripes. Whatever you say."

"And what's that supposed to mean?" Armesan narrowed her eyes a bit at the gnome, catching the disbelief in her voice.

"It means that I've had a friend I just liked getting it on with while we hung out before, so I know what that looks like. You, my friend, are turning a very fetching shade of purple and choking to death over a simple sex joke, which in our many years together at this point, you have never even come close to doing any of the other times I've made them at your expense. That tells me whatever you two are doing means more to you than just a few rolls in the hay."

"I wasn't expecting you to open with that, and I've had a rough day."

"Rough day before or after you had Xan pinned between your legs? Don't think I didn't see that even if I was in the middle of a beatdown."

"It was a duel. Some dumb thing that paladin over there roped us into," Armesan indicated the draenei that had been supplying their drinks.

"When was the last time you ever agreed to actually participate in someone's dumb thing without bribery?"

"Who says I wasn't?"

"You are so full of shit," Teegan growled, very close to just tearing her hair out at her friend's stubborn refusal to admit the obvious. "It took me almost two years to get you to willingly join me at the bars rather than skulking in the shadows when we first met, and somehow in that same span of time Xan has managed to get under your skin, into your pants, and then some. Would it kill you to admit that?"

"If it'll make you drop the inquisition, I'll admit to anything." the night elf glowered.

Teegan could count on one hand the amount of people she liked, and even less that she loved.  There were only two she’d die for, and this infuriating elf was one of them.  She was her sister, even if they were separated by every conceivable metric, and that fact alone was why she was able to find the willpower not to try and strangle the elf right then and there.

But if she'd picked anything up from Enoki, it was ways to deal with your siblings, and that rule number one in sibling warfare was to never let them know they're getting to you. If one tactic didn't work, shift to another. Teegan's usual blunt questioning wasn't working, so it was time to grease the wheels a bit.

"Look, between the dungeon crawls, the errands, this disastrous tournament plan, and now this upcoming assault on Castle McFreezy over there, I just know the only thing that has kept me sane this whole time is knowing that there are people worth coming back for. People I care about. A lot," Teegan said seriously. Armesan's irritation fizzled slightly at the admission and some of the defensive tension left her posture, which encouraged Teegan to continue.

"People I love," the gnome admitted softly, sitting back down from the standing position she had been in to be eye level with the elf. "People I thought I could live without two years ago but now I'm not so sure. And if there's one thing I want to do before I have to blow a hole through the most horrifying armada of undead we've ever seen, it's make sure that those people are happy before…maybe I can't anymore."

There was an awkward pause at that, and Teegan winced slightly as it dragged on. She hadn't necessarily meant to bring up the elekk in the room, but there it was.

"You know where they're sending you, don't you?" Armesan said just as quietly after a moment.

Teegan sighed and nodded. She hadn't told Enoki yet, because she didn't want to ruin the mood tonight, but she'd gotten the summons just before they'd stopped off in Dalaran, and it was bad.

"Me too," the elf whispered, such that Teegan almost didn't hear her.

The warlock blinked and looked up at the rogue, who was twirling a claw around the rim of her glass idly, silver eyes downcast and oddly dim. Despite it all, it made Teegan chuckle dryly. "The rough day?"

Armesan shrugged in that way that Teegan had come to understand meant 'yes but I'm not going to say it out loud'.

"So we're both screwed, and not in the fun way," Teegan blew out a heavy sigh, but caught the rogue's eye with a grin. "But tonight, we get to live however we want, like it's our last night on Azeroth. And I want to start it off by making sure my oh so stupidly over-cautious and suspicious sister doesn't pass up a good thing just because it wasn't something she saw coming."

There was a wry laugh from the elf as she shook her head, but Teegan couldn't quite parse which one of them it was directed at. "We're just…very close friends, Teegan."

"Except every every time you say 'friends' now and it sounds flimsier and flimsier, especially since I know that you know what he looks like naked," Teegan said, elbowing the elf in the shoulder. "C'mon, either you start talking or I will, and your liver is not as immortal as it used to be is it?"

Armesan gave her a studious look, glancing between the gnome and the shots on the table, as if debating which was the more preferable fate, gossip or alcohol poisoning. Eventually, the night elf sighed in defeat.

"'Boundaries' is not a word in your vocabulary, is it?"

"Awwww, you know it isn't," the warlock smiled proudly, throwing back the last glass she had just as the Draenei came back with the next round. Armesan merely sighed and grabbed a glass, resigning herself to more questioning.

"Soooooo…." Teegan leaned over the table and resting her chin on her upturned palm as she grinned mischievously at the elf.

"So what?" Armesan sipped her drink, wary of the near predatory look on Teegan's face.

"Sooooooo…" Teegan said slowly, until she was certain Armesan was drinking and then asked, "Did he drink from your 'Well of Eternity'?"

There was that distinct choking noise again as that flush returned to Armesan's face and ears and she nearly spat out her drink again.

"Oh my gods you absolute bitch!" Armesan wheezed between coughing, choking, and trying to suppress the laughter Teegan could hear underneath it all. "I am not answering that!"

Teegan's grin was absolutely unrepentant, but she did pat the night elf's back sympathetically. "Hey, just sayin' if you've got a guy willing to go down on you, then you keep him. I know I am."

"Does he know that yet?" Armesan smirked at the gnome knowingly.

"The night is still young," Teegan said pointedly. "And I have a list. Not all of which are 'acts of debauchery' as you so like to call them, you hypocrite."

"Only most?"

Teegan grinned. "Only most."

"Look at you, admitting feelings and everything," Armesan laughed, giving the warlock a look of approval.

"You could too, you know," Teegan tried one last time, even knowing that the rogue would refuse.

Predictably, Armesan just scoffed dismissively. "Bite me."

"No, that's HIS job," Teegan shot back effortlessly, nodding at Xan as she saw him and Enoki coming up behind Armesan. While the rogue turned to confirm who Teegan meant the gnome gathered up her glasses and hopped off the bench to make room. The two brothers exchanged scowls but apparently had come to some agreement that ended with Xan sitting down next to Armesan where Teegan had been sitting.

"And now weeee…" Teegan paused and waggled a finger between her and Enoki before the warrior could sit down, "…are going to go get started on that list. Have fun you two!" the gnome grinned, and shot Enoki a look that said follow me as she turned around and sauntered over to another table, cackling maniacally all the way.

"You JUST got here!" Armesan yelled as the gnome walked away.

"Remember! Last night on Azeroth!" Teegan yelled back, ignoring the noises of protest behind her.

A few moments later, she heard the low rumble of Enoki's laugh as he caught up and grabbed a few of the glasses from Teegan's overburned grip. "Guessin' from dis dat ya figuahed out whatcha needed?"

Teegan sighed a bit but smiled none-the-less. "Not in so many words, but I think I've stirred the pot enough that she can take it from here. How'd it go with Xan?"

The warrior smirked down at the gnome. "Spent mosta my life thinkin' 'e had it all togetha, an' it turns out he be just as much a mess as da rest of us."

"Oddly encouraging, isn't it?" Teegan grinned.

Enoki chuckled in agreement. "Kinda. But ya be right. Somethin' be goin' on wit dem."

"Well, we did our part, now it's up to them to make of it what they will."

There was another grunt of affirmation, but then she saw Enoki glance down at her curiously as he said, "So what's dis about a list?"

Teegan's smiled widened just a little bit. "Just a few things I had in mind before the night is over. You in?"

Enoki didn't even hesitate, and it made Teegan's heart flutter. "Always."

---

"So," Armesan said after a minute or so after Enoki and Teegan were well out of earshot. "What're you in for?"

"Siblin' crimes," Xan said dryly. "You?"

"Same," Armesan sighed flipping Teegan off from across the little courtyard. The gnome gave her an annoying two thumbs up in response before turning back to Enoki. "How is it we always end up getting ditched at these things?"

Xan couldn't help but snort in amusement. Two completely separate festivals, two worlds apart, and somehow they ended up right back in the same place they had in Ratchet where it had all started. Though the clink of glasses as he shifted his arm was different from last time.

"Where da hells did all dis come from?" Xan blinked at the hoard of shot glasses, both filled and empty, that were piled in front of Armesan. She didn't look drunk, certainly not enough to account for the amount of empty glasses in front of her. The night elf glanced down and snorted in amusement.

"Most are courtesy of Teegan's fel-tainted liver, the rest are an apparent prize from that draenei for the duel."

Xan made a noise of understanding. "Ah. Right. Who even won dat whole thing?"

The elf waved vaguely in a direction behind her. "The paladin seems to think I did. He's been lording it over the orc for the last twenty minutes."

"Well technically ya were da one wit da sword at mah throat, I t'ink dat counts as winnin'."

Armesan shot him a wry look. "You could have gotten out of that hold easily if that tauren hadn't nearly landed on our heads."

Xan simply shrugged innocently and grinned at her. "A win be a win. Guess ya gonna have ta tell me what ya wanted fo ya prize den, eh?"

Armesan smirked back and slid one of the glasses over to him. "First you get to help me finish these and save me from the hangover Teegan had planned."

Xan chuckled and accepted the offered cup, raising it in mock toast. "Ta family. May dey mind dere own fuckin' business."

"Cheers," Armesan agreed, clinking her glass against his and throwing back the drink in tandem with Xan.

"Ya know, I nevah thought about it but, ya even still got any?” Xan mused as he set the glass down.

"Any what?" the elf winced slightly and glared at the cup accusingly before turning back to Xan.

"Family. Any bruddahs o' aunties? Parents?"

Armesan swayed a bit as she rolled her head back, looking around as if that would help her search her memory. “Ehhhh, I doubt it.  By the time I was born most of my house had either died out, been married off, or splintered off to join more prosperous houses.  My parents were distant and if I had any siblings they were all older than me and long gone by the time I could consider such things,” Armesan sighed.  “If any survived the Sundering and the wars, they’ve never sought me out. Maybe if things had been different it would matter more, but I’ve made peace with the solitude. Mostly. It is the price my people paid for the ignorance that broke the world.”

"Sounds lonely," Xan said simply.

"It's not…" Armesan clicked her tongue in thought. "It's wasn't loneliness in the sense that you may understand it. We weren't lonely, we were alone. And yes, there is a difference. We spent 10,000 years as these…unknowable beautiful eternal creatures paying a penance. The Immortal Mortals. That was how people knew us. How we knew ourselves. Until…we suddenly weren't anymore. But the a sense of otherness didn't just disappear when the clock started again," Armesan said. "It's just something you don't really notice when the only mortality you have left comes at the end of a blade, and it is not easily undone."

Xan studied the night elf a bit, blinking at the sudden admission. "Huh. When ya said ya were envious of how short our lives were, guess I nevah thought 'bout what livin' dat long would really mean."

"Most don't," she smiled sadly. "Things get…distorted when you outlive empires."

"And den dere's us, where we were jus' happy ta make it past puberty," Xan chuckled nudging the night elf slightly to try and drag her out of the melancholy.

"You guys have some long lifers in there, don't you though? There hasn't been word of a new King of the Zandalari in ages," Armesan pointed out, but her voice lifted some at offered shift in topic.

"Well ya, if ya got a bargain wit a Loa, den dat's a whole otha story," Xan snickered.

"Oh? Do tell," Armesan perked up, resting her elbows on the table and putting her chin on folded hands.

"Ya learned our language but none of our culture, eh?"

"It's one thing to get some missionary Zandalari to teach you their language. It's another to get them to open up about their people's traditions . Especially to a Kaldorei, no matter how helpful they might have been."

Xan grinned. "Was wonderin' who taught ya."

Armesan merely smiled innocently and sipped her drink, gesturing for Xan to continue.

"Bargains, blessin's, voodoo rituals, sometimes regeneration messes wit lifespans. Den dere's blooddrinkin' an'…um…well…"

"…The soul eating?" Armesan finished when Xan stalled out a bit, but the way she said it held no judgment beyond the question it was. It conjured that warm feeling that Xan had been feeling more and more often around her.

"Heh, dat, ya," Xan chuckled dryly, but not unkindly. "All dose can lead ta some trolls stickin' around fo' longah den othas, an den othas try an' replicate it but it nevah works da same way twice, so it be kinda hard ta tell what causes it sometimes wit all da in-fightin' and wars."

"So is that why so many male trolls have 'jin at the end of their names? Trying to replicate or reincarnate long lived warriors of the past?"

"Nah. It's a marker mostly. Means 'Eldest". It's 'jira fo' da girls. We dun got house names or surnames or nothin' like dat, so it's kinda a way to show ya expected ta protect o' lead. Not everyone does it though," Xan waved it off, chuckling slightly at the assumption. Thousands of years old and she still didn't know everything. "What 'bout night elves? Every otha Kaldorei I meet be named afta some type of weatha."

The night elf groaned and pinched the bridge of her nose. "Ungh. It's a translation thing," Armesan bemoaned dramatically. "There aren't always direct translations so we adapted them as best we could. It just happened that most of our names translated into weather patterns."

Xan burst out laughing at that, which just made Armesan sink lower onto the table in mock shame. "Wait, so what does A'mesan translate to?"

"I'm not telling you."

"C'mon, can't be any worse den Xan da Eldest."

"You will have to kill me and enslave my soul before I tell you," she deadpanned. It must be something truly embarrassing.

"I promise ta make it worth ya while," Xan shifted tactics and leaned in close, covertly nipping at the tip of her long ear and grinning with accomplishment when she tilted into the gesture without thinking. "Even make it easy fo' ya. Just ya surname den."

"I thought I was the one who won the duel and got to demand a prize. Unless you want to go for round two?" Armesan flashed her teeth in a wicked grin and she leaned forward in challenge. "I'll even give you your swords back."

"Temptin', but I got a different kinda duel in mind," Xan purred, more blatantly invading her personal space and putting a hand on the bench between her legs, just shy of anything indecent.

"Mmmm much as I like where this is going, we are still smack dab in the middle of an Argent Crusade commons area," the night elf tilted her head up as if she were trying to angrily stare him down, but the expression is her eyes was anything but angry.

Fuck it let them watch, Xan almost said, but managed to catch himself at the last second.

"Dat's a very responsible thing ta consider," he said instead, and sat back, getting to his feet and grabbing her hand to yank her up as well. There was a surprised yip as he used his full strength to lift her over the bench they'd been straddling but she didn't resist as he pulled her much closer than was proper. "Good t'ing I got a very irresponsible solution fo' dat."

Anyone with an ounce of attention span to spare would easily have noticed that this elf's hands were lingering far too long before she pushed him away playfully, and that this troll kept nudging and herding her less like harried prey and more like a dance, but the nearest sober person was probably on the other side of the tournament grounds, and the noise of the party only grew as the music played and the ale flowed. The two of them had absolutely no trouble sneaking into one of the unoccupied storage tents at the edge of the grounds and as soon as there were no more eyes, the reins were dropped.

Xan couldn't help it and he lunged at her, hands grabbing her roughly under her legs  and spun her around until she hit one of the central support beams, his body crushing against hers as he dove in and devoured her with a bruising kisses along her neck.  Her back hit the post with a thud and her legs locked around his waist while fingers raked through his hair, flexing and pulling as he worked.  He responded quickly, grinding up against her and shifting his grip to her thighs, digging his fingers in hard.

Armor did not stand a chance as latches and buckles were torn or undone, whichever came first. Cold didn't matter because everywhere she touched Xan's skin burned and he felt like he was going to go mad unless he grounded himself somehow, but it was so hard to think with her teeth on his neck and her short panting breaths in his ear.

"Ya know, ya nevah told meh whacha wanted when fo' winnin'," he growled into the skin of her shoulder, trying to suppress the urge to just sink his teeth in.

"You. Until the sun comes up, you're mine. No excuses needed."

It shouldn't have sounded so sincere. She was just throwing his own words back at him. But she had said it so quickly, so easily, no hesitation, and hands that had been all but yanking his hair suddenly released and desperately cradled his jaw like he was the most precious delicate thing in the world. With her fingers running along his skin, her silver eyes no longer full of fire and venom, and instead that soft warmth that seemed only reserved for him, suddenly everything felt far far more real.

It froze the troll in place for a moment before he caught his breath and his brain caught up to her words and the emotion he had heard behind them.

"Only 'til sunrise?"

"I'm a realist, Xan. I know what's coming. And so do you," she said sadly, and Xan couldn't help but glance at the ugly scar on her shoulder that had never properly healed.  A permanent reminder of the night the Lich King almost claimed her. A spectre of things to come. Armesan noticed and leaned down to catch his gaze and direct it back up to hers. "So here is what I want. For one night, let's pretend that we are anywhere else but here, and that sunrise doesn't have to come."

"An' what if it ain't pretend?"

The fact that she didn't snark back, didn't scoff, or laugh was the tip off. He just felt her grip tighten as if she wanted to say something more but didn't trust herself to speak. Instead she leaned in to gently kiss him, no demands, no teasing, just the feel of her lips against his, her ears rubbing against his tusks as her hands gently guided him to her.

It was so different from that first time they had kissed, and now that he thought about it, it was the one thing they had never repeated in the year since. Until now, and instead of that unchecked frenzy of want and lust, it was gentle and desperate as if this were the last time she would be able to, and wanted to give and remember everything.

Like she was saying goodbye. Suddenly Xan remembered something Teegan had said before she and Enoki had left and he finally cracked. Enough. He needed to know, or at the very least needed confirmation he wasn't going crazy. That he wasn't imaging things that weren't really there. If nothing else he needed that before facing down the horrible potential of Ice Crown Citadel.

Mustering the willpower to pull away from her, and gods and loa was it hard to, Xan broke the kiss and looked her straight in the eye as he repeated himself. "Answer da question, A'm."

"Xan…"

Xan's grip tightened and a low threatening growl rippled through the air. "Please…"

The few seconds of silence that followed was agonizing, and Xan's heart started getting heavier as they ticked by. But eventually Armesan reached her free hand out and gently brushed the tuft of red hair he couldn't quite ever get out of his face aside so she could rest her forehead against his, and the pressure abated.

"Ask me again when it's over," she whispered, her normally sure voice wavering ever so slightly.

Red eye searched and saw sorrow there in those silver pools, but also a reflection of the same raw, desperate yearning that had been clawing at the back of Xan's mind all night long. It was answer enough. 

This time he closed the distance between them and tilted his head so he didn't hurt her with his tusks as he captured her lips with his own. He leaned in more, tongue pressing against her lips as if to request entrance and she obliged, letting him explore her mouth with an agonizing thoroughness, taking his time, as if making sure to etch every detail he could into memory, roving over her lips, exploring her fangs, testing the sharp points, tasting her tongue as their fervor grew and the world fell away from them.

Xan was inside her, and she had her long legs wrapped around his waist and her arms around his neck and their chests pressed together but somehow they weren’t fucking. He wasn’t gnashing his teeth as pleasure tore through him, wasn’t interested in seeing how hard or how fast he could chase his own satisfaction or seeing how far he could push hers. She didn't make demands of him either, hips swaying in time with his rocking, not grinding, not urging him on. She seemed as content as he was to simply be together and take their fill of each other while they could.

It was after they’d exhausted their bodies…after she’d settled herself against him…nestled into his lap, head resting on his chest and her legs tucked into the protective circle of his arms and legs…when she’d fallen asleep in his arms and he held her close. That was when Xan finally accepted the truth he'd been trying to avoid putting into words for gods knew how long. That she was more than just his best friend.  More than just a good lay and a fun time.

She drove him nuts sometimes with how stubborn she could be, she was secretive and dangerous, she had a body count that terrified normal people, and enough insecurities to fill a library. She was broken and imperfect.

But so was he, and she was everything he could have ever wanted in a partner.

And he loved her.

He loved her, and they were being sent off to die on the front lines of this loa-forsaken war.  

“Ya bettah not die, A’m,” he whispered to her in the deep darks of the night while she slept.  “I dunno what I’ll do if ya do.”

---

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