Eye of the Beholder

Five.

No matter how much Eliana tried to rid herself of the image from the day before, of Illidan's retreating back as he left the Square in utter chaos behind him, she found that the memory persisted, the visual haunting her dreams.

It wasn't so much that she was afraid of him—at least, she didn't believe that was the case. It was more so that the display of such power, and his control over that power, left her awestruck. It was the first time she'd seen his talents at work and it differed so greatly from what Elune gifted her priestesses with, that she thought it might be the contrast that she feared.

But not Illidan himself. Never Illidan.

Like so many other times in her life when her emotions were turbulent, she found herself wandering through the forest with no particular purpose. Cytheas, had they still been speaking, would have reprimanded her at being so carefree with her own safety. She nearly smiled at the thought, until she remembered that they were no longer on good terms.

At that thought, her stomach clenched and she crossed her arms over her chest, her shoulders hunching up.

He had been there for her throughout her entire life. By this age, she was perfectly capable of taking care of herself, of course, but things felt...empty without him. She no longer had someone to confide in and he wasn't around to tease her relentlessly—she never would have thought she'd miss that.

Most of all, she longed for the moments where they would sit beside each other in complete silence. Neither of them had to say anything; it was their presence alone that comforted one another. There was no one else, short of her father, that she shared that closeness with. That had been what she was most afraid of losing when he'd begun to court her. Sadly, it had ended up happening anyway.

As she wandered along the dirt path, she tilted her head upwards and let out a long sigh as she admired the moon's waxen glow as it filtered in through the trees. She'd been out in the forest for nearly two hours now and Tyrande was likely wondering where she'd wandered off to.

Since Eliana had confided in the older female about what had transpired between her and Cytheas, Tyrande had taken it upon herself to ensure that Eliana was never alone. She appreciated the kind thought, but being surrounded day in and day out was starting to wear on Eliana's nerves. Hoping to seek some solace from her fellow priestesses' pestering, she'd wandered out into the wilderness, looking forward to being surrounded by nature. Out here, the overwhelming smells of the city dissipated, leaving only the sharp scent of pines and bark, which had always relaxed her.

Eventually though, she realized she couldn't run away from her responsibilities for much longer and began to make her way back to the edge of the forest. When she was almost out of the thicket, she heard the sound of a branch snapping behind her and twirled around, her eyes darting back and forth. After her and Cytheas' sparring match some time ago, she'd bought a set of daggers for herself. When she reached for them, she realized that they still sat on her dresser, back in her room at the Temple.

Kicking herself for leaving unarmed—Cytheas really would have yelled at her then—she started to back up towards the clearing behind her when a sleek, black and silver Nightsaber crept out of the bushes, its tawny eyes trained solely on her. She froze in place, not wanting to set it off with any sudden movements. Though Nightsabers left you alone most of the time if you didn't antagonize them, if this Nightsaber was feral, she had little chance of survival against such a massive beast—especially with no weapon.

The Nightsaber tilted its head at Eliana before it slinked closer, causing her to lean back, her heart pounding in her chest with every step the creature took. When it stood just before her, it nuzzled her hand with its enormous snout, its prickly whiskers brushing against her arm. A shaky breath escaped from her as she tried to remain as still as possible.