World of Warcraft: Journey of the Huntress

Chapter Eleven

It felt like days passed as she slept, her body finally having reached its limit from all the traveling and fighting and worrying she had done since she first set foot outside Stormwind Keep after hearing about Anduin's disappearance. Even in her dreams, she dreaded waking up because she knew the prince – being a healer – would chastise her for taking such poor care of her health. But he was there, he was alive, and she would endure any amount of lecturing he had for her because it meant she would get to see his face and hear his voice again.

She felt something brushing against her forehead and reached up absently with one hand to swat away the offending insect – or what she assumed to be an insect, anyway. Soon enough, however, the gentle touch returned and when she batted at it a second time with a groan of protest she heard a soft chuckle and opened her eyes. She then shut them once more as the early morning sun filtering through the canopy of the trees above attempted to blind her, and she turned her head toward the sound of the laughter she'd heard before making another attempt to look at her surroundings.

"Are you always this grouchy in the morning?"

"Only when people insist on waking me up," Larraine retorted, smiling at Anduin. He was kneeling next to her on the ground, his hand poised above her forehead. This time when he lowered it to touch her, she didn't swat it away. Instead, she closed her eyes and breathed a soft sigh as she felt the gentle warmth of the Light radiating from his hand.

"You seem much better this morning," he told her after he had finished his assessment, brushing his hand over her hair briefly before finally pulling away. "You had me a bit worried yesterday, though, with the way you suddenly passed out."

"I was just tired," she insisted, sitting up. A sudden wave of dizziness came over her and she immediately flopped back down onto the makeshift bed she'd been placed upon, and Anduin sighed and slid one of his hands under her shoulders in order to support her as he helped her to sit upright more slowly.

"You were a bit more than just tired, Larraine," he admonished her, though she noted a fair amount of concern in his voice, as well. "You were suffering from complete exhaustion and a mild concussion."

"A concussion?" Larraine wondered, raising a hand to her temple. She hadn't fallen or hit her head at all during her search, so the fact she would have one baffled her. Then she remembered the way Cho had hit her upside the head while she was attempting to focus her energy after drinking the dream brew. With an annoyed sigh, she closed her eyes and shook her head briefly and then laughed.

"Alright, yes," she said, nodding. "I suppose I may have had one of those, as well, and not realized it."

"How did you even find me here?" Anduin asked her, his brow furrowing in confusion.

"Well," she began, turning slightly so she could face him without having to twist half her body in an uncomfortable angle, "I met this pandaren and he made me a special tea. I drank the tea, and I saw a vision of you, running away from hozen. You defended yourself, then attempted to flee and ended up backing yourself into a corner, so to speak. Luckily, though, there were two pandaren meditating nearby and they came to your rescue. After I saw that, I found my way here using the landmarks I had seen in my vision as a guide."

"That's remarkable!" he exclaimed, his face lighting up in wonder. "Those events are exactly what transpired several days ago."

This time, it was Larraine's turn to look confused. "And you've been here all this time? Why not leave for some place safer? You do realize your father sent a search party out to look for you, don't you?"

"I figured as much, but I just couldn't leave them," Anduin told her, shaking his head. "Not after they saved my life."

"Leave who?"