A Grim Heritage (Sandfury)

[Lilliana]

((This all happened sometime last week....FYI :) ))



There was a priestess lying in wait outside for Xaraphyne, However, unlike most who lie in wait for their prey, ready to pounce at their unsuspecting victim, the red haired Sandfury troll rested lazily on the back of her silver hearthsteed, the one named Colbynau. Lilliana was, of course, in plain sight. This priestess was rarely sneaky, at least not so in a physical manner. If there was any pouncing to be had, Xaraphyne would have ample warning to get out of the way and make an escape without much trouble.

Lilliana had come to wait for her friend as the evening was early yet, and there was still time to go out and play. She had told Xaraphyne that her mother had come back, and her promise to introduce the troll hunter to the ex Sandfury Martron, Bloodshine, was one that she intended to keep. Interacting with her mother was not one of the things on Lilliana’s list of favorite things to do, however a visit to her mother’s home with Xaraphyne at her side would prove interesting. She had no idea what her mother would say to the troll hunter, who had features so similar to Lilliana’s and so similar to those of her mother. The only difference was where Xaraphyne was tall, Lilliana was short. Where Xaraphyne’s eyes were warm gold, like the sun, Lilliana’s were a striking blue, as the sky on a clear day. Other than that their features were nearly identical. To any horde (or alliance) considering them in even
a brief glance, these two appeared like sisters. Now, Lilliana knew that Xaraphyne was not her sister. Her mother had only birthed one child herself, and that was Lilliana and Lilliana alone. Lilliana knew that were two possible exceptions. She thought only one was likely.

Lilliana greeted Xaraphyne with an impish grin as the troll hunter trotted down the steps, away from the Grim’s initial threshold. Xaraphyne’s eyes flashed at the priestess, mirroring the sun with their intensity. Her smile was instant. “Watcha doin’, Lilly?”, Xaraphyne asked after jumping down the last step to the grass covered ground below.

The reply came as a gentle and childish voice. There was the usual accent which was more likely to hail from the halls of Gnomergan, rather than the brutal and barbaric tribe of Sandfury that Lilliana so obviously is tied to. “Not much, Xaraphyne. Wanna go and see my mother. She's back! I swear for real this time! Do you want to come along with me?” That impish grin was still on the young priestess’s face. “We’ll go to her home is Oggrimar, if you like! She’ll get mad at me for us going there, but hey, that will be fun in itself!”

Xara laughed at her friend's impishness. "Is that the best foot ta start off on?" the hunter asked. However, Xaraphyne didn't sound truly worried about it. She trusted Lilly's judgment... enough. Summoning her mount, the Cenarion hippogryph Fhenrir had tamed for her, she gestured that the other trolless should lead the way.

As they began to head off, Xara asked, "So yer an only child, right? Did yer mom raise you alone, or...?" Xaraphyne wished to have her questions all answered now, but Lilliana wasn't very helpful.

Lilliana did answer, "I'm an only child, we aren't sisters." She shook her head. "Although, wouldn't that be really cool!?" Lilliana threw her head back and laughed as she trotted towards the Zepplin that waited in front of the gates of the Undercity, and the two of them flew up to catch it to lead them into Orgrimmar. Once in Orgrimmar, Lilliana kept them to the lower streets, their venture
causing a cloud of reddish dust to fill the air behind them. Lilliana didn't answer the rest of Xaraphyne's questions. She figured that she would leave that to her mother. None of the Grim know how Lilliana was raised, nor would they, save for the other three Sandfury, Warneshi, Worneshi and Boggart, long since departed from the Grim. Although Lilliana was quite fond of Xaraphyne, she
was also realistic in what she dilvulged.

The two of them ziggagged here and there, through the streets. Chattering to one another in their usual way, as if the two of them had known one another for years. Although Lilliana avoided any more questions, and Xaraphyne was polite enough with her friend to honor that Lilliana didn't want to answer them without first meeting Bloodshine, her mother. Lilliana turned off into an alley in
between a row of lower class housing, garbage strewn about, forgotten by the horde that were assigned for clean up. Without a word she lept off of her hearthsteed he immediately flew away. Lilliana knew that when she called him he would return. Xaraphyne looked at Lilliana curiously, but did the same and off her hippograph went.

"Yer momma lives in an alley?" Xaraphyne looks about disapprovingly, then giggles.

Lilliana waves her off, and turning she places her forehead against the metal and wooden side of the alley. She mutters something which, to Xaraphyne, sounds like a prayer. Or maybe a curse. Lilliana finishes her mutter with a harsh word, and steps back. Before them a door appears, shimmering slightly. It's very difficult to see, and Lilliana grabs Xaraphyne by the hand to pull them
both inside before it disappears. The two of them feel for a moment that they are melding with the alley itself and the cheap orc house that backs up to it, before they find themselves into the front of a warm and homey little den. The transition leaves both of
them a bit dizzy, but it passes quite quickly.

"Whoa! Yer momma is sneaky, Lilly!" Xaraphyne exclaimed, her eyes growing big. "What's with yer mom anyway.....?"

Xaraphyne's trained hunter eyes roamed through the room, not waiting for Lilliana to answer her. Lilliana stayed at the doorway, which was quite visible from the inside. Xaraphyne's gaze took her from the furs on the walls, to a pot simmering with something that actually smelled inviting and made her stomach growl, to the fat pillows that rested on the floor that acted as the rooms
couches. "Oh!....And what's this?" Xaraphyne had just moved forward to examine a painting on the wall that appeared to be of Lilliana and a troll woman that Xaraphyne could only assume was her mother. The funny thing about that painting though, is that beside the other troll, the one that was Lilliana's mother, stood a fat little gnome with blond hair and blue eyes. Xaraphyne turned
to Lilliana with an incredulous look. "Huh." She looked back at the painting, then at Lilly again, clearly wanting to ask, but not wanting to be rude.


Xaraphyne question was not answered, and her laugh was cut short, for a tall and imposing troll woman had sauntered down the hall. Xaraphyne could only assume that this was Lilliana's mother. She was not adorned with her battling gear, and wore just a dark purple robe. She obviously wasn't fearful for her safety in her own home, for there were not weapons on hand in this room. The tall troll woman's face was youthful, and resembled Lilliana's in many ways, although this troll woman was beautiful (by troll standards), her features angular and striking, whereas Lilliana's features were only cute in her own type of way. There was another difference that Xaraphyne noticed, and this one almost made her cringe. The other troll's expression was cold, almost dark. Xaraphyne immediately sensed that she was a shaman, but there appeared to be something else about the path that this troll followed, and she
couldn't quite put her finger on it. She was a shaman, but she wasn't. Xaraphyne wasn't about to ask.

"Hello, Lilliana." The troll woman in the purple robes stepped up to the priestess lingering by the door, ignoring Xaraphyne. Her voice was raspy, hoarse, and was almost grating. It held little emotion. She embraced Lilliana, and Lilliana returned the gesture stiffly.

"Mother," Lilliana put her hand on her mother's arm, and turned to Xaraphyne. "This is Xaraphyne Nawe. One of the Grim." Lilliana paused, her gentle voice almost hesitant. "And we want to talk to you."

[Lilliana]

((Some of the following are SECRETS))

Xaraphyne smiled one of her bold smiles, and bowed her head in greeting. The red tendrils of her hair scattered across her face as she did so. She moved to hold out her hand to Lilliana's mother, but then was stopped by the shaman's gaze.

Lilliana's mother, better known as Bloodshine, acknowledged Xaraphyne. Her blue eyes, mirrors of Lilliana's save for the cold harshness that shone within them, almost locked Xaraphyne in place. Bloodshine considered Xaraphyne for a moment, and Xaraphyne found herself unable to speak while the shaman basically stared her down.

"You're Worneshi's girl." Bloodshine's announced in that harsh, grating rasp of hers. She was then found tapping her chin with a talon, looking thoughtful before her expression softened. Only a glimpse of the original darkness Xaraphyne had noted still remained. "I'll be damned." Bloodshine mused.

Xaraphyne was about to speak, but then Bloodshine took Xaraphyne into an embrace. It wasn't the stiff embrace that she and Lilliana had exchanged, as Xaraphyne felt a level of warmth in it. It felt familiar, although it wasn't. And it felt safe. The shaman's embrace left no question that Xaraphyne would return it, and the hunter found herself hugging Lilliana's mother. This troll woman who had made the announcement that she is 'Worneshi's girl.'

When Bloodshine released Xaraphyne, the hunter's eyes grew big. She found her own voice. "Who's Worneshi? Are you sayin' that he's my poppa?" The hunter turned to Lilliana for answers, and found Lilliana grinning at her from ear to ear. The priestess only shrugged to her.

"Sit down, it does look like we have a lot to talk about." Bloodshine gestured to the pillows. Lilliana dropped her weapons carelessly on the floor beside one and flopped down. She then promptly received a dark look from her mother, and she sat up primly, but she didn't pick up her weapons. Xaraphyne made sure to carefully place her bow and arrows gently on the floor, and also sat down. Bloodshine stepped over to the black pot hung over a small fire pit. Xaraphyne stared, as she hadn't noticed that as the smoke rose, it simply dissappeared, as there were no open windows here to redirect the smoke from the flames. Bloodshine busied herself with preparing all three of them soup, a mixture of strider meat with some curious vegetables, that had been simmering in the pot, and they each received large wooden bowls.

Bloodshine sat down, but shoved the pillows away from her, settling on the hard floor. The stone was cooling, as Orgrimmar is often quite hot and stiffling. "She doesn't know who Worneshi is, does she?" Bloodshine asked of Lilliana.

“No,” was Lilliana's reply. “I haven't said anything.”

"Can't say I do," Xara said. She fiddled with the spoon, not eating as she looked at them both.

"Well then, Xaraphyne Nawe," Bloodshine began. "Worneshi would be your father. You were correct in your questioning."

Xaraphyne piped up. "Then you and Lilly are..." she prompted. She asked of Bloodshine, to eager to wait for Bloodshine to explain at her own pace.

The shaman's blue eyes turned cold as Xaraphyne spoke up, but she continued in her rasping voice. "That would make me, in a way...your grandmother." Bloodshine noted Xaraphyne's expression change, but she spoke over her. “I'll explain. Don't worry. And this girl here." Bloodshine pointed to her daughter. "This one....." Bloodshine was still pointing to Lilliana, who was grinning ridiculously...."This one...." Bloodshine almost sighs, but doesn't quite, ".....is your aunt, at least by half...or full...however you want to take that after I explain."

"Lilly is my aunt?!" Xaraphyne didn't know to laugh or not. She looked to Lilliana and said, "Auntie Lilly?"



((To be continued......Family heritage coming to light! I need to do a darned genogram to explain!))

[Leyujin]

(( oh, to be a fly on this wall ))

[Lilliana]

((So....I kind of made up a genogram for the Sandfury saga!

Only thing I forgot to add is that Slys'Thok was actually killed by the Grim in 2007 through Warneshi's big 'ol storyline where Regnantah killed his brother, Worneshi (second death for that poor guy, as Warneshi had once drank his soul) and all the Grim piled into Zul'Farrak to rescue Warneshi and kill Slys'Thok. I don't think there are any Grim around today that were there. Hmmm!))

[Filora]

[[ What do the slashes mean? ]]

[Lilliana]

(( Slashes in between the lines mean that these people are no longer 'together'. An 'X' over a person's name means that they are dead. Lines in between a person and another person mean that they were a partner at one time (but once there are two slashes it means they are not together). I should have put Fhenir on there for Xara! I will add that! Since Bloodshine got her gnome on there!))