Theidran's Epilogue
The only thing that disturbed the woods was the roar of his mechanohog, a deep chopping noise as he drove down the dark path, lit only by the dim and dirty headlight at the front of the bike. A bump in the road made the springs and sheets jostle with a sick sound. Definitely the contraption had been through a lot in the years he’s owned it.
Theidran rode fast, the throttle ripping through the silence and probably scaring any wild springpaws off into the thick forest. He wore the goggles Van had given him a long time ago, protection against the wind while he drove. Even they were scuffed and broken in spots when he crashed the bike sometimes.
A ripped cloak was strapped around his neck and shoulders, his hood fallen back with the swift cold wind as he drove on towards his house in Eversong, the long black head of hair he had in a ponytail whipping around behind him. His expression looked sad and determined, a pinch to his eyebrows and a thinning of his lips.
He stopped the bike with a squeak and a putter of the engine near the path that lead up to the house some long walk away still. He moved the mechanohog closer to the brush and let it relax for the long ride he had ahead of him. It was his only transportation for now… Sadly Ahaun had been shot down during the Seige on Orgrimmar a few weeks ago. Theidran mourned for the wyvern he’d had for… well, years. Almost a decade it felt like. Ahaun had been his best companion for too long, and losing him didn’t help his mentality at all, especially after Jakiel attacked him in Ashenvale.
Theidran let out a long sigh, relaxing as he started to melt into the shadows on the ground, a gentle smear of black watercolor on the rocks and fallen leaves as he started to make his way through that way towards his house. He approached quickly, travelling the shadows was convenient like this, at least. He slipped through the gates that surrounded the estate easily, and hopped out of the shadow to crouch, his cloak falling around him like a satin curtain. He looked up and pulled his goggles down around his neck. A saddened frown fell onto his mouth when he saw the candle in the window…
Varaelian still waited for him. That would make this a lot harder to do then.
He whipped his gaze off the little light in the top window and fled into the shadows again, slipping through the grass and seamlessly through a windowsill into the house. He stepped up onto the floor and out of the shadow again, his cloak silently brushing the hardwood floor. He looked around the house… It was just as he had left it months ago. A heavy nostalgia fell onto his heart as he looked around. There’s his table. His couch. His fireplace. The door leading into the courtyard… Van’s vase.
Abruptly there was a soft noise from the stairs. A quiet ‘mew’. Of course, as silent a rogue as Theidran was, he couldn’t escape the cats. It was the intuitive, slim Ezra who found him first. She bounded across the floor straight at him. He caught her when she leapt onto his lap and into his cloak, pulling the calico cat up into his arms to hug dearly. He murmured an apology to the feline, kissing her head and ears and neck while she rubbed on his cheek and purred away loudly.
The noise attracted the other cats too. Soon Ghost and Magdeline found him too. He was relieved to see that Magdeline had grown healthy… The fat white ball of fluff was a runt and a kitten when he left. Theidran didn’t want to move and do what he came to do with all of his cats cuddling and starting to lay on him… Magdeline, obviously, was wary to join. She never got to know him growing up. But she stayed close to Ezra and Ghost.
The cats had thoroughly rubbed off their fur and smell on him by the time he sadly placed Ghost off his lap to stand up. They all chased the ripped fabric of his cloak as he walked quietly through the house. He moved up the stairs to the second floor, making a direct path to the bedroom he shared with Van. Inside, the light was on. Just the table lantern. It lit the room in a warm yellow glow, leaving the corners black. He pressed his shoulder to the wall and gently pushed the door open a little more for him to peek his eye through the slit. He saw Varaelian hunched over his desk, seeing nothing but his blonde head laid down on the desk full of papers and styled pens and different colors of inkwells. He was asleep…
Good, thought Theidran.
The cats didn’t meow, thankfully. He pushed the decorated door open and let it swing silently on its hinges. He stepped into the doorframe and looked around at the bedroom. It had definitely changed, taking a more Varaelian-feel to it in Theidran’s absence. Some of his things had been moved out. He looked at the big bed he use to share with him. It was neat and looked like it had never been slept in.
Very suddenly a loud siren was blaring. A red contraption sprinted out from behind Van’s desk, starting to shout alarms. Theidran wasn’t around to be introduced to Rody, so he had no idea what the hell it was but it needed to shut up yesterday. He was in the shadows half a second later, whipping over and taking Rody with him into the shadow plane. The room went quiet again save for the soft padding of cats around the bedroom.
A few moments later Theidran returned, alone… Varaelian stirred on his desk, groaning quietly at the half a second loud noise that almost pulled him out of the deep sleep he was in. Theidran crouched on the carpet and watched the paladin for a long time, waiting for him to fall back into the sleep.
He took this time to watch him, too… Watch him breathe, and live. It had been months since he’d seen Varaelian. Seeing him now, asleep, it felt sacred. He looked peaceful. The rogue smiled softly, so tempted to walk over and wake up the blonde and greet him. To kiss him.
The minutes passed by, the cats having gathered on the foot of the bed all curled together in a milkshake twirl of brown, black, white, and grey. Theidran stood up finally after watching Van for a couple minutes, confident he was asleep again. He was quiet and undetectable as he padded leather boots over the soft carpet, moving behind Van and pulling the fountain pen out of his ink-stained fingers and setting it down beside the document he was filling. With a quiet swallow, Theidran slid his fingers over the soft blonde hair flowing off Van’s shoulder. He only captured a few strands, not daring any more in fear of tugging too much and waking the paladin.
He gently placed his fingers over Van’s shoulders and they were gone, just like he had done with Rody. Except unlike leaving the little robot in the shadow plane, he took Van through it in half a moment and had him in the bed and under the covers. The cats stretched and settled back down at the flash of shadows in the room at the technique, and didn’t seem bothered. Ezra picked herself out of the cat pile and moved to curl against Van’s legs.
Theidran watched Van shift around in the blankets, the paladin’s clothes in his hand. He tilted his head a little and just watched, taking in his appearance and refreshing the love he still felt for the blonde. ‘Still felt’... Theidran almost snorted at the thought. Of course he still loved Van. He loved this house, he loved his cats, he loved the seclusion in the forest with him. But there were other things he had to do, and it was going to take a long time to finish.
He pulled a few blonde strands off Van’s face, smiling at him, loving every weary feature on his face, loving the scars on his eye. He loved everything about Van, and he wasn’t sure the paladin ever believed him about it. It was tragic he wouldn’t have more time to try and convince Varaelian, but he would do that one day maybe. Come back finally, and live again.
He stepped away from Van and the bed and went to twist the lantern off, letting the room fall into darkness save for the twilight glow coming from the balcony windows. He put the melted ring Jakiel had ruined next to the lantern and the fountain pen. This was it. The closure they both needed.
Ghost perked his black ears up and peered over with his bright green eyes at Theidran when the rogue started to leave the room again. The cat hopped out of the swirled pile of cats and chased after him. Theidran bent down before Ghost could start meowing, and picked him up. The larger cat climbed up and over his shoulders, hanging on with claws gently holding onto the cloak around Theidran. “I’m sorry,” whispered the elf to the cat as they started to close the door. He clicked it closed and let go of the door knob, frowning.
Van was on the other side of this now. That was the last time he’d see him for a while. The last time he’d see Ezra and Magdeline for a while too. He won’t see Arenthiel, or the house, or this forest.
But, alas… He kept his goodbyes short, just in case something tempted him to stay for good. He walked downstairs again, turning his shoulder onto the back of the couch where Ghost hopped off his shoulders and looked up at him expectantly. Theidran smiled and leaned down to kiss the top of his furry head and whispered, “I’m sorry, Ghost. You’re such a good cat… stay that way. Stay with Magdeline and Ezra and Van.” He gives the cat another kiss, and Ghost stand up on his back legs to rub over his cheek.
He resists cuddling the cat again, and was once again in the shadows of the floor, slithering over to the window he had slid in from. He was outside and on the grass and out the gate within a few moments then, making his way back to his bike.
He hopped out and started the bike up again, the loud rumbling breaking the silence of the forest again. He drove off and back down south towards Lordaeron again, where he had came from.
By morning, Rody would pop back into existence out of the shadow plane with his sirens still blaring downstairs.
