Ties that Blind

[Laeynna]

"Is that supposed to be a compliment?”

Laeynna simply stared at him for some moments, unsure about how to take his words. Did she seem the type of person capable of taking advantage of another like so? She didn’t doubt her own ability to do so. Capable of endearing herself to another, all for the sake of worming a way into the heart. Assuming people had hearts. Laeynna wasn’t wholly certain of that.

All the same, she simply stared at Qabian some moments before she continued, regardless of whatever he might have thought to reply with. His answer didn’t truly matter, after all, and she didn’t feel particularly hung up on it. “Yes. Two things.”

Claiming the various notes and articles he’d offered to her to help along the way, she paced slowly, from one corner of his desk and to the other. “I know you will have eyes on me to determine my success or lack thereof, however, is there something you want off of her? A trinket, perhaps? Some other material proof of so-called conquest?”

“And…” Laeynna paused for a moment, considering her next words carefully. “If the worst should happen,” for she knew very well not to expect the best or really anything good, “see my remains alongside my sister’s in our homeland.” It was an equally grim thought, but knowing she’d not dare implicate the association, the thought of failing and the consequences that came with being caught meant she had to think ahead.

Just in case. Some called that pessimism. She preferred to think of herself as realistic.

[Qabian]

Qabian raised an eyebrow as he stood from his chair and moved out from behind the desk. "If you want to take anything from her, you're free to do so, but if the conclusion is easily observable or becomes public knowledge with some expedience -- I recommend leaving what's left somewhere that can be found -- then I don't need any trinkets, no. I don't want anything from her except her end. Unlike some, I don't care about prolonged suffering either. Nice if you can get it, sometimes risky, certainly not required."

He leaned on the desk, casually half-sitting on the side of it as he watched her pace. "Now if you end up finishing the work outside of Dalaran itself, or manage something truly stealthy where her unfortunate accident ends in her simply vanishing, then yes, some token of evidence will be needed. Her lack of continued survival will be provable in time, but I wouldn't want to mistake it for her going into hiding. That would hardly serve the Mandate.

"As for you, I'm sure it will be unnecessary, but if for some reason it is needed because dawn is guaranteed to no one, I can see to those arrangements myself, yes. Your compliment was a simple statement of fact. If my confidence is misplaced, I suppose I'll find out." His smirk took on more noticeable unkindness.

[Laeynna]

Laeynna found herself pausing when he addressed her particular concerns. Eying him closely, she eventually nodded. Slowly. Of course. Better not to get overeager. The concept of bringing him a trinket was a nice one, but as he said, not necessary. The circumstance would show itself, Laeynna was certain. It would be better to have her somewhere that she could be discovered.

Hugging her materials to her protectively, she straightened her posture. "I hear you," she agreed with one more nod of finality. "I will not do anything more than what is needed. At least, naught that might incriminate any of us." Including herself. She'd be as careful as was required to get the job done. And if she succeeded... Well. She supposed she had bragging rights for some time.

Turning her gaze onto the entryway, she found her words once more. "If there is nothing more we need to go over, I have some last things I need to do. Disguises and all of that. Otherwise, people may come to recognise me by my speechless beauty."

She wasn't serious. Mostly.

[Qabian]

Qabian's eyebrow raised again as he stepped up behind Laeynna, his arm at her side without touching her in ushering her toward the door. "Perhaps. But who actually recognizes the rose that has been grown under glass? Still, once you take it out into the crowd, then I can see the concern. Disguise as you wish."

===

Some time later, outside the Violet Citadel, Jessalyn Redgrave paced frantically between the steps and the Legerdemain, stopping now and then to look over her shoulder and adjust her thick glasses. While the bulk of the Alliance and Horde both had moved on to the South Seas, she did not feel safe, not after the previous year's incident that had her misplaced faith rewarded with threats both spoken and silent.

Noraline Paleheart was a name Redgrave had not heard in decades, but her attachment to the quel'dorei woman was well known enough among Redgrave's friends at the time that when the name was used in a petition to the Kirin Tor, it didn't take long for that news to reach her, with all the frustrating lack of detail that accompanied it.

She knew the Grim had moved on, had been seen in Kul Tiras and Zandalar both offensively and as defenders, and that Qabian had been among them. But she also knew he was a mage to whom distance was effectively meaningless. The Scarlet who had started the entire ordeal had been seen lately as well, but had not given her further trouble, possibly because she hadn't given him the opportunity, laying low as she had been in the year since.

Redgrave had weighed her knowledge against the possibilities held by whatever context Paleheart's name had been brought about, and decided her need to investigate was greater than her legitimate hesitation about those bearing her ill will, thus she stalked the streets, or at least one street, of Dalaran, trying to decide which step to take next.

[Laeynna]

But who actually recognizes the rose that has grown under glass?

The words remained with Laeynna, even as she ventured to Dalaran. The question had seemed a rhetorical one at the time, but with little else to occupy her as she waited, she seemed to have all the time in the world to simply… think. The outright answer was that no one did. Yet beauty was subjective, as were most things.

He’d said it wasn’t particularly necessary, but with her face attached to introductions, Laeynna disagreed. She had no intentions of spending the remainder of her years, looking over her shoulder and waiting for that moment when someone would strike upon her. That was not living, after all, and while she couldn’t have claimed to held much fondness for her own life, if she was going to live it, it certainly wasn’t going to be under the firm heel of paranoia. As such, before she even set out, the priority was to change herself.

As much as she could, anyroad. One could not exactly change a personality. She could act, but that wasn’t the same. Even if one acted for so long that they began to be fooled by their own masquerade, it couldn’t be called a true change. Simply one under façade. The midnight blue and black hair that framed her face was stripped of colour, leaving the very natural ice-white blonde beneath it, a colour that Laeynna had not seen since she was in her younger years. Makeup had to change to something more subtle and inconspicuous. Of all things, she had need to blend into the crowd of her kin. Her only regret was that while the Sin’dorei had begun their purifying process, she could not remove the taint from her gaze.

Perhaps one day…

Noraline Paleheart. That was the name that she had decided on. Laeynna hadn’t, of course, known the Quel’dorei at all, but no one else needed to know that. As far as she was concerned, she could just as easily pass off that she scarcely remembered the woman and from what little she had, they were fond memories. Perhaps she could even spin the concept that she had been so moved by Noraline’s presence and deeds in life that she had a mind to follow in her footsteps. Jessalyn Redgrave could help guide her.

Laeynna frowned. Was it convincing enough? Soon, she’d have no time to possess doubt and consideration. Soon, she’d simply have to move along and do the utmost to persuade anyone that she knew precisely what she was doing, who she was, and what she meant to accomplish. Most of all, she’d have to persuade herself. Somehow, that seemed far more difficult than convincing anyone of such in the Grim.

She shuffled through the satchel she brought, examining the vials and plant samples that accompanied her. She’d had plenty of time to concoct a poison in the time that it had taken for her to grapple the reins of the situation. How potent was it? She could not wholly say. Laeynna had not exactly had as much time as she would have preferred to experiment with it. The experimentation she had done had been on innocent desert creatures and they had taken none too kindly to fel-encrusted plant properties broken down. Yet to be fair, no one had ever claimed that fel was part of a balanced meal, and it seemed Laeynna had an overabundance of it at her fingertips.

If it killed Redgrave, it wasn’t going to be a very pretty death. Ah. Well.

The details could come later.

[Qabian]

Redgrave learned a little more from the Kirin Tor in the city about the petitioner who had used Paleheart's name. The easiest thing seemed to leave a note that arranged a meeting in the Citadel proper, rather than track them down herself. If they wanted help from the Kirin Tor, Redgrave still had all the most useful connections, even if she had let those connections lie mostly unused for the past year.

Sin'dorei, definitely. But that made sense. Redgrave had lost touch with Paleheart during the war. Many of the elves of Dalaran had returned to Quel'thalas when Arthas began his rampage through Lordaeron, even those who believed Silvermoon couldn't fall, including Noraline. Many of them were never heard from again. If anyone survived who knew her, chances were they must be sin'dorei. Their people were born from the violence that took her.

Still, all that had happened in the years since, especially with the Sunreavers, made the blood elves difficult to trust at best. Redgrave wrung her hands together as she paced, this time while waiting in a small side room of the Citadel meant for just such quiet meetings as this. The guards knew the description of who she was waiting for, and the note she had left for the stranger contained her name.

[Laeynna]

Correspondence had happened quicker than Laeynna had anticipated. With no desire to lollygag any longer than necessary, she made haste for the Citadel. And there, she formed the first chapter to a story she had not pre-written, and a tale of deceit that would lead nowhere good.

"The name is Rani Goldheart," she began when she stopped at the entry. "I have come to seek audience with Lady Redgrave."

To say that it was not unnerving to stand in territory where she believed herself to be unwelcome would have been a falsehood. Although the elven members of the Kirin Tor were some who were not so different from the Sin'dorei, she could almost hear the nagging voices of her parents long since deceased. She was never to forget from whence she came or the sufferings her people endured. To her father, it had been an insult to be called a Quel'dorei. At least... It had been once they adopted their new name as a people.

For once, she would have need to play the part of the sympathiser, though she doubted she looked much like one.

The longer she contemplated, the more nervous she grew. She thought it would dissipate when she was authorised entry, and instead, the knots in her stomach grew.

I must not falter, she reminded herself. It is as Qabian said. My strength may not be that of the others' and yet I possess strength my own. Oralech would say much the same. I must learn to stop relying on them both and find my own resolve. Nothing lasts forever, after all. It would be unwise to become comfortable with either of them.

Weaving her hands together, she painted herself as a demure, dainty young lady. Courteous with a display of charismatic mannerism that accompanied a feigned uncertain and naive disposition. As she was escorted to where Jessalyn awaited her, she took the time to map the rooms and corridors. She would have need for an escape route. Quickly, at that. Being ill-prepared would spell her demise.

Provided she survived to even reach escape. She supposed there was no use in jumping too far ahead. Those who made preemptive assumptions tended to suffer for them.

[Qabian]

Redgrave stopped in her pacing and looked up, adjusting her glasses as the door opened. "Rani Goldheart," the guard announced.

Redgrave smiled at the blood elf's arrival, and the smile was honest but wary. Her gray hair was bound to her head in a tight bun that pulled at her temples, and her thick silver glasses somehow made her seem even older than she was, and she was relatively old, for a human, though she had that mage's way of staying spry well beyond her years, so even though her looks betrayed her age, her movements did not.

She bowed low in the Silvermoon style at her guest's entry and announced, "Archmage Jessalyn Redgrave, at your service." As she straightened she explained in a somewhat hurried voice that skipped too much small talk, "Don't let the title fool you. I'm not on the Council or even particularly in leadership. I'm more of a bureaucrat and organizer around here. But Noraline Paleheart and I were very dear friends before the Third War. I assume you were also, given you mentioned her name? Or are you related? A sister? A cousin? A daughter?" Redgrave's eyes narrowed. She opened with a test.

When the guard behind Laeynna moved to shut the door, Redgrave raised her hand and called to him. "Door open, please." Redgrave's paranoia was showing, but it would make Laeynna's own escape easier as well. The guard nodded, bowed shallow, then headed back out into the hall.

[Laeynna]

Laeynna... was not wholly certain she'd made any expectations when it came down to Jessalyn. But even the elven woman was caught a little by surprise, something she tried her best to keep tightly tucked away. Of course she was older. Or looked it. Scholarly. Most likely clever. And an archmage, though one that reminded Laeynna that things were still run primarily by social politicking.

There was a distinct irony there. Her people had certainly been in love with that world once upon a time, when they were all nobles with their high and mighty demeanour. Hell, many of them still were. Suffering didn't exactly eliminate any of that nobility.

Remembering her courtesies, Laeynna dipped into a low curtsey, careful not to keep her gaze on Jessalyn's for too long. In the back of her mind there sat recollection. It had been something of an impolite thing to stare too much, especially at a person. Her insides withered. There was something a little repulsive about the imagery. Her, offering any kind of human a second thought.

When Jessalyn continued, Laeynna righted herself. "Niece," she replied, soft and breathy. "If I may..." Taking a moment to reach into the insignificant pouch she'd brought for the journey, she withdrew both the tabard and the notebook Qabian had lent her for just such a mission. The latter Laeynna had possessed the foresight to read through and over, only to find it was... memoirs of a sort. A journal.

"On my mother's side," Laeynna further clarified as she considered offering both articles directly. But with Jessalyn's transparent distrust, she knew better than to simply hold them out. If she had been herself, she would have taunted the woman. Instead, as Rani, eyes scouted the side room they'd met in and she picked a neutral surface to them both where she placed them.

"Auntie Noraline visited us oft, when my sister and I were little," she continued, mustering up a wistful smile, though with a hint of sadness, as if such made up days were filled with bittersweet memories. "Mother adored her. If it hadn't been for her, my sister and I might have had a rivalry. Instead, watching her and Mother... Well. I wanted to emulate them both."

Her hands wove together once more and the features in her face softened further, hiding all of the disdain far beneath the layers of her masquerade. "Mother passed some time ago. I only recently had the courage to go through her things. In them, I found these. I thought... you would want to have them. Auntie spoke of you with reverence and respect. It... it is a rather humbling honour to be standing here with you now."

[Qabian]

Redgrave kept her eyes behind her glasses narrowed in suspicion at Laeynna, but as the older woman approached the tabard and notebook, her expression lightened to curiosity as she touched the fabric. The tabard was old, the shades of the colors used and the edging of the symbol were of a style not used in decades, even though the cloth itself had been well-kept. She trailed her fingers over the tabard before picking up the notebook, and pulling her glasses to the end of her nose to look over them.

Her eyes widened as she read. "You found this among your mother's things?" Redgrave asked incredulously. "It... It has been easier to assume most of those we lost in Quel'thalas were lost entirely, families and all. It's very unusual to find any of them alive, more unusual still to find them both alive and willing to revive old connections. Your only reason for inquiring with the Kirin Tor then was to give these things... to me?"

[Laeynna]

Not the only reason, Laeynna thought as she watched Jessalyn and gauged her reaction carefully. At least, not the only reason as far as you're aware.

Witnessing what ended up being a true reverence was a little uncomfortable. Laeynna could never really recall being attached to anything. At least not material-wise. Perhaps she had been to Zalla, but that seemed like a different girl from a very different time. Most of all, that didn't seem like the same Laeynna she was in the present. As such, watching Jessalyn take such care with something that clearly possessed sentimental value, the Sin'dorei could only be fascinated, a concept wrapped tightly by her professionalism and deceptive empathy.

"It..." Laeynna began, unable to keep herself from turning a little pink. "I have found that it is oft more convenient for many of us to put aside the memories that deliver unto us strife. It is convenient to find reasons not to face such things. I could have delivered this to you sooner if I had found the courage to journey through my mother's things." She paused and carefully fidgeted with her hands, somewhat the way she imagined a younger child would have. "I too, am not immune to wishing to avoid the sadder memories of history."

Tilting her head, she continued, "Delivering these to you seemed the right thing to do. I understand that as suns rise and set, the world around us is constantly changing. The people in it as well. Society's expectations. Our loyalties encouraged to be where they are because of those around us. In spite of that, I feel it is our responsibility to do what is right, even when it is difficult or dangerous to do so. Yet... understand, my lady, that I could not have delivered these to you if you had not shown your own bravery in accepting me as audience."

If there was one thing she could do, it was to use words, and in that respect Laeynna was quite confident. Not overconfident. Just enough so that she could properly spin her ideas in appealing fashion. If anything, she knew the right thing to say and though she noticed a flicker of it, Jessalyn possessed something that Laeynna perceived as a chink in that armour.

She possessed hope.

[Qabian]

Redgrave was quiet, staring intently down at the notebook as Laeynna spoke, and she stayed silent for a pause after. When she finally broke her silence, Redgrave said, "You could have put these in a box and sent them in the mail, but you wanted to meet me? In person? Because of how she spoke of me?" She looked up, suspicion in her eyes again. "Did your aunt speak of the Kirin Tor when she was alive? Or your mother? About who we are and what we do? What she did with us?"

[Laeynna]

"You are right," Laeynna began. "I could have. I suppose to me that never was feasible. Sending it in the mail would have ensured you got them both, certainly. But it's impersonal."

She moved from where she stood, though was very careful not to do so toward Jessalyn. Fel forbid the woman lose her mind and launch herself into some hysterical frenzy. (Laeynna wasn't certain such would happen, but it seemed better to be on the safe side.) "You aren't coming out and saying it, but I can see it in how you're looking at me. Yes, I'm a Sin'dorei. But like my family, once I was a Quel'dorei. I have a semblance of honour, of dignity, of integrity. Perhaps not all of my people are like that, but what right is there to judge one for the sins of the many?"

Slipping her hands behind her back, Laeynna stopped and she set her gaze back onto Jessalyn, features softening once more. "Again, I did what I thought was right. I know what the Kirin Tor does and stands for. I also know that things change over time. As a child when Auntie Noraline was visiting, I doubt very much I understood the significance of the Council or of those who were trying to make change in the world. I'm here now, though. Obviously for a reason. Not that you have need to offer such a kindness, but maybe I too, am trying to fill in some holes about someone who was important to me. Seeing you in the flesh offers to me a kind of solace in knowing that my growing up was not all stories, but some truth as well. It helps me, though maybe not as much as having my aunt's things helps you."

If it even did. It was a presumptuous thing to think, but some risks needed to be taken. Passion for the right reasons could sometimes be seen as a boon. Laeynna had to at least try.

[Qabian]

Redgrave frowned, then sighed. "Kael'thas, Jaina, Aethas. They all played their parts in pushing the blood elves away from the Kirin Tor. They never entirely succeeded, but they certainly had varying degrees of success. Noraline would have..."

She put the notebook down, then fixed her glasses back up on her nose, giving Laeynna a hard look again. "I can't speak for what she would have done. She's gone. Her blood was part of the river of pain that inspired your people to take that name at all. You seem to have put enough value on her to have come this far to find me in a moment of rediscovery. But it never once occurred to you to follow in her footsteps?"

[Laeynna]

Ah. Kael'thas.

Laeynna drew in a deep breath and held it for some moments. A shame what befell him. Questionable methods, but could it be particularly terrible of him to want liberation for his people? For them to find their own? She didn't think so. But she had a feeling it would be wiser to leave those words unsaid.

Besides, Jessalyn had made mention of a very interesting concept. Why hadn't she even pursued such avenues? Lack of knowledge. It didn't hurt to offer some personal truths. It was vague enough that it wouldn't be traced to her, she imagined. Plenty of people were following in the footsteps of the Light.

"My father was rather adamant that I entered the priesthood," she explained with a kind smile. "It would be false of me to say I was not influenced by my aunt, however. I have certainly thought about emulating her even further. Perhaps one day I will wake with the courage to truly do so. Although I would question my own worth to do something of that sort. After all, again, I am rather obviously a Blood Elf. Could you say that the Kirin Tor would even accept me? I think they would take one look at my eyes and cast me out, regardless of whatever my personal beliefs are. And I would not be able to hold them at fault for that."

She shook her head, "It is certainly a notion I entertain." A darker thought passed her. A good word from Jessalyn on her behalf possibly could have paved a pathway for her, but that also meant putting the woman's life on the line when Laeynna's inevitable betrayal would occur. Somehow, she imagined that wasn't exactly the way Qabian wished her to accomplish the task he gave unto her.