It had been 6 months since that awful day when I received the news that my lover Tristan had been killed in action. He had been ambushed by a marauding band of horde on the road to Southshore after our night together in the Hinterlands. My commanding officer tried to convince me to take a leave of absence to grieve, but I knew that I would flounder with nothing to do. So instead I continued in battle, each horde I came across I saw him standing above the broken body of my lover and it filled me with rage. After each encounter, I would be shaking and break down in tears. Finally after watching this behavior for 6 months my general sent me away for a vacation.
I chose Winterspring for my getaway. I couldn't go home to Teldrasil just yet. It was too soon to return to the home that we had shared. I had heard many rumors of the beauty of Winterspring, and I was pleased to find that they were not exaggerated. It was indeed a gorgeous place. My favorite spot was the hot springs. I would send Scruffy out to chase bunnies and strip out of my soft leather clothes and soak for hours. When I got too hot I would stretch out on the snowy bank until I was shivering from the cold.
"Tristan would have loved it here," I thought to myself as the all too familiar tears sprang to my eyes. "Stop it! You have to move on." I dried my tears for the hundredth time. I rested my head against the bank and closed my eyes. I heard a twig snap off to my left. I opened my eyes. I was so shocked to see a furbolg walking over to the place where I had hidden my clothing. He grabbed my shed clothes and looked up at me with striking, deep blue eyes and then ran into the woods. I yelled and came out of the water and followed him, oblivious to my nakedness. I tracked him to the road where I lost his path in all the footprints. I was concentrating intently on the tracks on the ground that I did not immediately notice a handsome warlock riding up on his felsteed. His intense blue eyes were trailing over my naked body. I stood up straight and bold to his perusal. He finally looked away, dismounted and rummaged through his bags and handed me a parcel.
"I believe my lady, you need this more than the intended recipient," he said in a deep rumbling voice. I did not miss the twinkle in his eyes. I was still stunned by the appearance of this handsome stranger, but reached out for the package. I untied the string and let the paper drop away to reveal a dark purple silk dress. "Go ahead, put it on," he said with a chuckle. When I turned my back to him and began to pull the dress over my head, he laughed. It was a deep rumbling cheerful laugh unlike any I'd heard since the war had begun. The hem of the dress fell to my ankles and clung to every curve of my voluptuous body. I turned around again to face him. He whistled and said, "Now there is something I could enjoy taking off of you my lady. I am Lord Drake du Loque, and you are?"
"Khalia Fadeleaf." I sank into a curtsey, "It is a pleasure to meet you Lord Drake du Loque."
"How is it that you happened to be naked on the road in such a dangerous place? I am certain you know there are furbolgs here who are not often friendly."
"Well it is because of the furbolgs that I am here. There was one who looked different from any I've seen who stole my clothes."
"How did it look different?"
"Well he had blue eyes," my words trailed off as I looked into Lord Drake's eyes, "in fact they look just like yours my lord." I noticed a twinkle in his eyes then, my suspicion continuing to build.
"So you are saying this furbolg was a handsome devil?"
I crossed my arms over my chest and tapped my foot impatiently. "No my lord, I'm saying there is some mischief afoot and I intend to get to the bottom of it."
"I see something I would like to 'get to the bottom of' and stop crossing your arms like that, you are ruining the view."
I stomped my foot and threw up my hands in exasperation. "My lord, pardon me for saying, but you are by far the most aggravating man I have had the displeasure of meeting." I started to walk away.
"Wait, please don't go. Perhaps I can help. I am a master of the dark arts," he said with that infuriating and alluring twinkle in his eyes. "And you look like the kind of girl my mother always tried to warn me about."
I was drawn to him, almost seduced by him and that twinkle was distracting! "Well my Lord, you have no idea what exactly you are getting into, but I would appreciate the help."