Niviene Larethian

Late Night Visit

Late Night Visit

She sat with her hands folded neatly in her lap, head bowed, her honey blonde hair falling forward to obscure her face. She glanced up, peering through the curtain of gold to watch him as he paced in front of her, his own dark hair,shot with silver and falling to his shoulders.

“You disappoint me my love. You have become quite domesticated. I would never have thought it of you and yet you’ve stayed, willingly, whilst he races off to war.” He paused, peering down at her, his brow creased with an all too familiar smirk, “It’s almost as if he can’t wait to get away from you now that he has chained you to his hearth. I can’t say that I blame him. Look at you, the model of subservience. Where is your fire? Where is your spine?” His eyes flickered over her, his voice dripping with scorn, “You are not the woman I left behind.”

Niviene allowed the silence to linger for a moment before she raised her head, squared her shoulders, and leveled an icey blue glare at him, “It’s true, he does leave me. But, unlike you he comes back. Every time. He is satisfied with the life we’ve created here. When he leaves he does so to insure that nothing can take it away from us. He does so to insure the future of our children.”

Noctifer gave a dry, mirthless laugh, “But they aren’t. Your children. Banagan is his child with Anaja and the girl is some whelp you’ve adopted out of… what? Guilt?”

Niviene gasped as if she’d been struck, “The fact that I did not give birth to her makes her no less mine. And Banny is more mine than Ana’s. I have not abandoned him like she did.”

The warlock sneered, “I wonder if he thinks the same, you should ask him the next time he comes skulking around.”

She frowned, trying to make sense of his words then shook her head as if to dismiss them, “Besides,” she said, focusing instead on a previous statement, “he isn’t going into battle anymore. He’s retired. He’ll be staying here in Duskwood and training paladins sent from Stormwind. We’ve made a nice, comfortable,” she leveled a pointed stare at him, “stable home here.”

Noctifer blinked at her then chuckled, shaking his head, “You don’t believe he’ll stay in your comfortable home once the fighting begins again do you?” his voice dripped with scorn, “He’s a fighter, he’ll join the fray.” he paused a moment, his expression turning to pity, “You were once a fighter too, you were fierce, strong. Look at you now, so full of righteous indignation at my words but helpless to deny them. You are not the woman I married.”

The anger that had been simmering inside her boiled over and she rose, taking a step toward the warlock, “No. I’m the woman you left behind.” she seethed. “Your approval, your disappointment, your opinion, none of it is of any consequence to me. Leave this place and don’t come back. You are not welcome here.”

The warlock grinned, raising his hand as if to caress her cheek though he never touched her, he leaned forward, his voice silky and seductive, “Have I told you my dear, how much I love your grey eyes.”

Niviene woke with a start, her eyes scanning the room as she sought to control her breathing. Braghaman lay sleeping beside her, the house was quiet, the windows glowing faintly with pre-dawn light. Silently she rose from the bed, making her way to the bathroom where she peered into the mirror, heaving a sigh of relief at the sky blue eyes that looked back at her. “It was a dream,” she whispered shakily, “it was only a dream.”