The Summons

It took her a moment to process everything. Slowly her fur began to lay back down and she began to chuckle as well.

"Aeornoss, it's been months!" The little druid and the stone drake walked over to each other, meeting on the other side of the little lake. "What news? How are you?"

"I'm...well enough, little one. Yourself?"

The events that took place within the gates of Darnassus flashed before Kelebek's eyes. Quickly she pushed them away.

"Well enough for the moment." She paused for a moment to collect herself. "What brings you here?"

"Looking for you actually. I was expecting to arrive in Darnassus in the morning, can't be flying in at night being a dragon-type after all, when I thought I heard a familiar voice off being carried on the winds. I wasn't sure in which direction it was from, but thought I'd wait by the water to see who would show up. Surprisingly enough it was the one I was looking for."

"Didn't realize you stone drakes heard so well."

"If the elements wish me to hear something, I have no choice but to listen to the sounds brought to me."

At this statement they both smiled at each other and let out a little laugh.

"Now, what brings you outside of the protected sanctuary of Darnassus, little ghost?"

"Well, I..."

A voice called off in the distance. "Miss Kelebek! Kelebek? Where you gone you milady? The meal is getting cold!"

"Cubical! I forgot about him. Aeornoss, come with me please."

Together they walked towards the sound of Cubi's voice. It didn't take them long to walk back to the little clearing that contained the camp fire, at the edge of which the silver haired druid stood. "I was worried your food would get co...oh! You have brought a friend!"

"Yes. Cubical, this is Aeornoss. He was my traveling companion for a short while. Aeornoss, meet my new acquaintance Cubical."

"Hello to you, good sir!" In response the drake bowed his head towards the druid and said a simple hello. A few awkward moments passed. "Well then, I suppose we should get to our meal!"

-------

The meal was accompanied by the sounds of eating and minor chatter. For the most part the event was peaceful, filled with easy pleasantries and what minor bits of gossip they had last heard about. As Kelebek had suspected, the news about the murder of Dax Grey had managed to spread throughout the little island of Teldrassil. She did her best to center herself so she did not flinch when she was asked to report the specifics of the topic ("Well you were in Darnassus when it happened Miss Kelebek, surely you know all the details!"), but thankfully she hardly had to utter a word on the subject. She breathed an inward sigh of relief when their little group was interrupted by yet another new comer.

A young huntress road up to the little group on a great white Nightsaber, her white wolf companion not far in tow. "I'm looking for a druid by the name of Kelebek Swiftclaw. She's believed to be wandering these woods. Have any of you seen her by chance?"

"Depends on who's looking." growled Aeornoss.

"I am Analla, I have been sent by the priestess Tyrande. There has been word about Kelebek's friend, and I have been sent out into the wilds to retrieve her so that Tyrande may relay the information herself."

"I am Kelebek. What news do you know of my friend?"

The youth shook her head; her teal braids hardly jostled. "They didn't give me any specifics to relay. They only told me to tell you that there was news, and that it was important." Analla's grey toned face was rather somber. Her little mouth pursed a bit as she said her next words. "I do know that the Lady Tyrande won't be in Darnassus for much longer, she has pressing matters else where and must leave before nightfall. You'd better hurry back." The huntress readjusted her hands on the reins of her saber and looked to her wolf. "Come pup, we must be getting back if we're to make dinner."

Kelebek watched the huntress ride away. "Cubical, thank you for the lovely meal. I really must be going though."

"It was my pleasure Miss Kelebek." He took her hand and kissed it. "I hope you have a safe journey back to Darnassus."

"Thank you." She turned to the stone drake, "Aeornoss...?"

"I will take you to the temple, child. You will arrive more swiftly on my wings than you will by your paws."

With great haste the little druid scrambled onto the stone drake's back. She motioned a quick farewell to Cubical, then pair were off into the skies.

-------

Aeornoss touched down just outside of the temple itself. There were a few shouts of surprise and many odd stares as the drake settled down onto the marble pavement. Kelebek ignored all of the commotion as she slid off of Aeornoss' back and half ran into the temple.

The only resistance the druid met was a guard as she made way for the ramp that led to the upper balconies of the temple. The guard recognized her and asked her what business brought her to the Temple of the Moon this time.

"Priestess Tyranda has sent for me, by way of a huntress named Analla. I was told that there was an urgent matter at hand."

"Very well, follow me please."

It took a good portion of the druid's willpower to not run past the guard. She did her best to calm herself as the two Night Elves ascended to the upper balconies. The mere minutes that the journey took felt like half an eternity to Kelebek.

"Lady Tyrande, Miss Kelebek Swiftclaw to see you."

"Thank you Ninyne." Tyrande fussed a bit more with the packages in front of her before she turned to the druid. "I'm happy that Analla managed to reach you in time. She's an excellent and swift tracker, but I feared that you would have been harder to find. I hope all is well with you?"

"Well enough, Priestess. I don't mean to be rude, but Analla said that you word regarding Taloris. What news do you have?"

"The good news is that Taloris has been found alive..."

"Oh thank Elune!"

"However, he is not well. He is being delivered to Darnassus within the week. The priestess here in the temple itself will be tending to him until I get back."

"Back? Wait, what is wrong with Taloris?"

"I haven't the time to explain right this moment, child. All I can do is assure you that we will be taking the greatest care possible of him." Tyrande summoned a guard to her side and together the two women gathered up the priestess' traveling bags. Just as they were about to exit the chambers, Tyrande stopped and began to dig around within the folds of her robes. "One last thing Kelebek, one of my advisors heard about your inquiries around the city about your family. She asked me to pass this message along to you." The priestess handed the druid the piece of paper, gave her a quick blessing, and quickly made her way out of the temple.

Dumbfounded Kelebek stood alone in the temple chambers, looking down at the paper in her hands. Tal is ill, I should have stayed! She tried to choke back tears of worry and regret, but a tear slid away and plopped onto the paper before her. Kelebek sniffled a bit, wiped away the wet streak on her face with her sleeve, then proceeded to open the note.

Little Druid,

I have caught wind that you are looking for the answers to your past. I have no evidence of who your family may be, or what happened to you so long ago, however there is an old crone in the highlands of Feralas who I hear is talented in the ways of finding information. She is said to live in one of the many caves in the mountains of the area. However, before you leave Darnassus in search of this crone, I advise you to first seek out your employer. She has been rather worried and would like to see you before you head off.

May Elune guide you in your search,
Advisor Natalie Bremsworth

-------

Kelebek descended the ramp slowly, setting each foot down much more heavily than she would have normally. She was still trying to process all of the information presented to her when she finally reached Aeornoss.

"What news, little ghost?"

"Taloris is alive, but not well. He will arrive in Darnassus in a week's time."

The drake solemnly nodded his stoney head. His eyes were drawn to the white object that the druid was clenching tightly. "What is that in your hand?"

"Information about the task I was on."

"I see. What is your plan?"

"We set off for Feralas in the morning. First though I have a few things to attend to."

"Very well little one. I think I shall wait just outside of the cities walls for you. I don't think these folk take too kindly to my presence."

Kelebek was already walking away from the drake, in the direction of her employer's house when she replied to Aeornoss. "That's fine. I will see you in the morning!"

"Yes. In the morning."

The drake turned himself towards the gates of the city and took to the sky, cold air and snowflakes swirling beneath his stoney wings.

The Woods of Teldrassil

By the time Kelebek passed the gates of Darnassus she had only a sliver of moonlight to navigate by. The night air was brisk and just cold enough that each time the druid exhaled she left a little frosty cloud of mist behind. She broke out into a full sprint, paws crunching down on the frost-kissed grass, feeling the knot in her stomach loosen as the pressures of society melt away. The druid smiled her kitty smile as she bounded through the dying under brush of the woods. On a whim she sprang up into a tree, only to have the branch she landed upon break with a loud crack, sending the druid tumbling to the ground. She landed with a thud and had to laugh at herself. Away she bounded again, pouncing on little mounds of dirt as she came across them. Kelebek felt silly and giddy, punch drunk as she ran through the purple forests of Teldrassil, tears streaming down her face.

Eventually she came to a little inland lake. Feeling emotionally drained now and physically exhausted, she crouched down and began to lap up the cool, clear water. When she had her fill she sat back on her haunches to contemplate. The giddy feeling had subsided, leaving behind all of the pain and emotion that she had been holding back since the night with Dax Grey. The panic, sadness and rage, along with a slew of other unexplainable emotions, coursed through the druid as she watched the ripples on the lake's surface. The tears she had shed moments before had left little frozen trails down her face. She wanted nothing more than to let out a low pitched cry to express and relieve the remainder of her unexpressed feelings but she instead shook her head and padded away from the lake. If she was to be in the woods for a period of time, she'd need a place to den. First rule of the wilds: Survival takes priority over emotions. That was that.

The sky was beginning to get a pink hue by the time Kelebek found what she was looking for. Amongst one of the many little mountains she discovered a little dirt cave. The ceiling had roots dangling from it, but it seemed dry. The den was mostly devoid of the scents of other animals, which was a great indication that it hadn't been occupied for some time. With an efficient haste she began to mark the cave as her own. She tore at the soil with her claws, then padded it back down to make it seem as if she had bedded there before. She then rolled around in the cave a bit, making sure that it bore her scent so that if another curious animal came strolling by they'd know that the little dirt mount they had just stuck their heads into had been claimed.

Pleased with having found herself shelter, the little druid took off into the woods with her next mission: breakfast. While she wasn't terribly familiar with the wild life of the island, though she had heard a few owls while she pranced about in the night and caught the scent of a boar. The claw marks on the trees made by the local nightsabers hadn't gone unnoticed either. Kelebek wasn't feeling up to the acrobatic task of trying to catch an owl, nor was she keen on taking down a fellow feline, so she set out on the faint scent trails of a boar.

The bright pink skies faded to a cool blue. The temperature had come up some, but in the early part of the day the frost still clung to many of the leaves and grasses yet hidden in the shade. It was because of the frost that Kelebek managed to stumble upon a small trail in the woods. The foot path was cut deep into what would have been mud had there been any rain recently, made by many tiny boar hooves. A few boars had used the path that very night; the lack of frost gave that fact away clearly.

Quietly Kelebek followed the path in a parallel fashion, not wanting to mar the trail for if she traveled on it herself she may startle the boars away from using it in the future. She continued to follow the trail for quite some time, using the underbrush and shadows of the forest to help hide her white fur. Finally she heard them off in the distance, three of them, squealing and grunting as they fought over whatever root they had just dug up. Kelebek slunk through the brush, closing the gap between her and her meal with quiet urgency. Within no time her prey were all within in the druid's sight, and when she was sure of the situation she crouched down behind a rather thick bush, waiting for the right time to strike.

Muscles taut, ears forward and barely breathing, Kelebek waited. Two of the boars were rather large and had prominent tusks, not something a lone (not to mention undersized) cat would want to take on herself. The third boar however was the one that Kebelek had set her eyes on. It was a young boar, its tusks were still tiny and fur yet soft, unlike the bristly hides of his companions. She was waiting for that perfect moment when the little boar would wander by, separated just enough from the other two that when she'd strike the rest would scatter in a panic instead of turning on her. Time ticked by slowly, but eventually the little boar did just just as the druid had hoped. He wandered over into the druid's range, and as he did so she readjusted her paws in a quiet, antsy fashion, tail silently twitching. Waiting...waiting...

Just as she was about to spring into action, a large crash was heard and a ball of white fur came barreling out of the woods to the right of the clearing. The creature was large, but not too much larger than Kelebek herself; a bear. He charged at one of the boars without much premeditation, for he struck out only to miss as his would-be victim squealed and high tailed it well outside of the bears range. The other two followed suit, high tailing it into the thick and frosty under brush. 

The bear stood in the middle of the clearing, panting. His sides heaved heavily as Kelebek observed him. He bore the markings of a fellow Night Elf druid. Infuriated, Kelebek charged at the bear, head-butting hard him on the shoulder.

"You idiot!" she growled.

The bear was taken completely surprised by the attack. He stood there stunned for a moment before looking at the cat, then looking down the trail of broken bushes left behind by the boars, then back at the cat.

"Apologies milady, I didn't know that someone else was in the area. I was just having a bit of fun, I swear it!"

"Your 'bit of fun' just caused me my meal." At her harsh words the bear hung his head. Kelebek exhaled heavily. 

The bear's panting slowed and he sat his druid bear butt down right in the middle of the clearing. He regarded the cat again with his head tilted; he smiled. "What would you eat a boar for, miss? Haven't you brought any rations? What kind of Kaldorei goes off into the woods this close to Darnassus without rations?"

"The kind that'd prefer to fend for herself..." Muttered Kelebek in reply as she turned to leave the clearing.

Kelebek managed to make it partially through the ticket bordering the clearing before the bear lurched himself back into a standing position. He lumbered quickly after the other druid. 

"Wait miss, wait!"

Tired, hungry, and now rather sore from a day's worth of activity after having spent months in captivity, Kelebek debated on simply pretending that she hadn't heard the other druid. At this point she wanted nothing more than to curl up in her new found home and sleep for an eternity. She had a feeling that she wouldn't be getting that sort of rest quite yet.

"Please miss, wait!" The bear was panting again as he trotted up next to the little cat. "I'm sorry if I offended you milady. Let me make it up to you somehow."

She stopped in her tracks and looked wearily at the other druid. "Alright, whatever you'd like." She said quietly, then continued on with her slow trek back to her awaiting cave.

They traveled together for a good while in silence before the bear once again spoke. "If I may be so bold miss, may I ask you your name?"

The smaller of the two druids remained silent for a bit longer before she replied. "Kelebek."

"Wonderful name! Mine is Cubical, though most just call me Cubi." The bear all but bounced in happiness as he stated this fact.

"Cubical? That's a peculiar name."

"It is Miss Kelebek, but I like it. Does yours have a story behind it?"

"Yes," she said upon finally arriving to her cave "however, we have arrived at my den and I'm exhausted. Perhaps I can tell you the story some other time."

"Of course milady. Sleep well!" exclaimed Cubi in his cheerful manner. 

Left without much else to say, Kelebek turned into her little cave after a quick look around inside to be sure that nothing had snuck in while she was away.

-------

The smell of cooking fish woke her up.

Kelebek slid out of her little cave and stretched her limbs under a sky that was just beginning to show its stars. Not far from the entrance to her cave sat a silver haired male Night Elf, who was busing himself with tending to the fish and fire. He turned his pink, bearded face towards her as she approached.

"Good evening milady, sleep well?"

She regarded him for a moment with her cat-like suspicion, then replied "It wasn't bad." The druid padded up next to the Night Elf and sat down. She eyed up what was in the pan that he was holding over the little fire. "What smells delicious?"

Cubical smiled as he tended to the meal. "Why, it's fish from the lake just over yonder. I mixed in some berry juice and a bit of root. I hope you will like it."

For a moment Kelebek's guard dropped and she smiled, at least as much as a cat could smile. Catching herself, she changed her expression to a more sober one, agreed that it would be a wonderful meal, and excused herself with the reason that she felt the need to wash up.

The druid took her time walking over to the lake. She lapped up the sounds of the wilds, relished in the feel of the crisp grass beneath her paws, and felt oddly comforted that there was a fellow druid not far away. While she was quite certain that her soul was still troubled, she felt more peaceful than she had in months. As Kelebek reached the edge of the lake, she exhaled, smiled, and felt gratitude towards the other druid that had so haphazardly bashed into her little episode, for lack of a better term. She allowed herself another little smile then bent her head so that she could lap up the chilling water of the lake.

"Little ghost..." The name had been uttered with a quiet rattle of a sigh.

Kelebek jumped at the sound, muscles instantly tense once more. It took her a moment to see the green stone drake standing silently on the other side of the clearing, staring at her.

The druid's fur was standing straight up in surprise and fright. "Aer...Aeornoss?"

The stone drake smiled at the little druid and gave a quiet, rocky chuckle.