Rabbit Stew?

Bunnies! The world is over-run with bunnies. You can't move for them. According to the scholars in Stormwind Library a group of rabbits "is known as a colony or a nest". Personally I think they are a plague.

If hundreds of fluffy bunnies hopping about getting underfoot wasn't bad enough they jangle. Yes. I did say jangle. Like those little metal wind chimes. It's kinda pretty and nice at first, but after about, oooh two minutes, it might as well be fingernails down a blackboard!

Also, they lay eggs! Yep. They do. They lay eggs. Rabbits...laying eggs. Did you know they could do that? Well. they can. But only these rabbits.

Then there's a herd of pet rabbits (domestic rabbit groups are apparently called herds..) trapsing about after, well, pretty much everyone. Chiming and laying more eggs.

If that isn't enough there are Blossoming Branches which turn people into rabbits! So we have more rabbits, and ridiculously, raiding rabbits.


But, the worst of all is the game of "Shake your Bunny-Maker" which requires people to place bunny ears on unsuspecting females of each of the races. So I spend the entire holiday looking "cute" as Aggrion puts it. After he'd stopped laughing at his hilarious opening comment of "My! What big ears you have." that is. Yes, all the better to listen to your screams of agony, or is that wind chimes?

Love is in the air

Love was in the air, or so the posters said.

To be totally honest I had pretty much decided to skip the whole thing this year after my romantic plans last year left me wondering if Aggrion was truly totally oblivious to my feelings or simply trying to let me down gently.

But just after the world became a cloud of pink and red I stumbled on a collection of friendship bracelets in my Guild's bank. Friendship. The events at Brewfest had made me feel ever closer to Aggrion and I believe there is more for us to explore, so whatever the future may bring, he's my friend and that was worth celebrating if nothing else surely!

The Romantic Picnic Basket that had eluded me last year was now available to buy. So with a brand new basket in my possession I confirmed that Aggrion would be free and in as off-handed way as possible declared it to be "a date!". Let him make of it what he will I thought trying my best not to care either way.

When I heard about the Love Boats that had been set afloat in Darnassus and Stormwind I could barely contain my excitement. I asked Aggrion which of the two cities he would prefer and he chose Darnassus, of course he did, being a Night Elf. It didn't cross my mind it might also have been the more romantic option. I wonder if it crossed his?

It was a beautiful, warm evening and we met at the pier just across from the Bank of Darnassus and I was astonished to see he wasn't wearing his customary plate-mail armour. Instead an attractive shirt enhanced all the right bits of his toned torso to perfection complimented by matching pants. I looked down at my black shirt and dress dismayed that I looked positively dowdy next to him. But the thought was lost as Aggrion's strong arms lifted and swung me gently into the boat.

"Wouldn't want you to fall in and get eaten by a crocodile now would we?" Aggrion chuckled by way of explanation.

I just laughed, completely unprepared for the tone of this 'date'.

We were the only boat on the water, the city was practically deserted, this only made it more special, exploring the almost silent city's beautiful waterways. The sun blinded me when we left the shade of a large bridge and I turned to see Aggrion was gone! I looked about in confusion and was about to start shouting when a wet hand grabbed mine on the side of the boat. Another appeared and then a mass of long blue hair floated on the surface of the water framing Aggrion's face complete with mischievous grin. He pulled himself into the boat laughing and soaking me in the process and lay in the bottom of the boat looking up at the sky. I'd never seen him like this. So relaxed, so free, so playful, so happy..?

We moored the boat at a pretty little bank near a waterfall and set up the picnic. Okay, I'll be honest. I'd been completely unsure of what to wear and opted for a casual look, but had brought along a much prettier dress just in case of a last minute change of mind. Now, dripping with water, I had an excuse to change. Whilst Aggrion didn't seem to care about his clothes clinging even closer than before, I most certainly did. So I ducked behind a stand of trees and changed quickly.

"You look great Ary, that's a nice dress." Aggrion said appreciatively when I reappeared.
"Oh this?" I replied, trying to hide my gratified blush.

The picnic basket contained a selection of the most exotic and romantic food and drink available and we wasted none of it. I got quite giggly from all the champagne, Aggrion was positively chatty (for him). Once the picnic ran out we sat side by side and watched the water lapping at the bank, listening to the splash of frogs, totally content in one anothers silence. I leaned back and closed my eyes, trying to commit the moment to memory when I felt a large hand on mine, I opened my eyes as Aggrion gently took my chin turning my face his way.

"Ary, I want you to know that you are more than just a friend." He said in little more than a whisper.

Then he leaned down and kissed me and I had the presence of mind to close my gaping mouth in time to return his kiss.

The year that was

Winter Veil always seems to me to be a double edged sword (wooden one of course) or perhaps two sides of a chocolate coin.

Don't misunderstand me, the feasting and merry making, the mountains of presents and the decorations that adorn every spare corner whip me up into a near frenzy of bubbling excitement. My friends listen with fading patience to my enthusiastic chatter of presents, decorations and festive fare. Even my demons become ever more reluctant to heed my summons , fearful of being draped in tinsel and adorned with fairy lights!

Yet the festival has its roots in coaxing light in the darkness of the depths of winter, in the promise of spring and the renewal of the world. So, for me at least, it is also a time to reflect, to take stock and to remember past times. There's something special about the quiet after the party has died down, staring into the low flames of a dying fire lit by the twinkling of fairy lights.

This has been an interesting year, for myself and of course my companion, Aggrion. We had all but lost touch with one another at the end of last year and the discovery of Northrend did little to enthuse my warrior. Eventually I was able to drag him out of his drunken stupor and we boarded a ship from Stormwind that took us to the besieged town of Valgarde. There we began to learn a healthy dislike and respectable admiration for our new foe, the Vyrkul. Our first few expeditions left me concerned that our friendship was not what it had once been. Had our time apart created a chasm too deep for us to bridge?

Perhaps to reassure myself I started to spend my free evenings reminiscing. Remembering the many adventurers we had experienced together and our varied and ridiculous disguises. In light of these memories it seemed foolish for me to worry, we have so much that binds us.

But Valentine's day came and went with my romantic meal coming to nothing but a 'pleasant' few hours. Can he really be so blind to my feelings? Still, as the weeks and months passed we fell back into an easy way with one another, getting a feel for each others moods and more importantly, fighting styles. We worked together fluidly, bantering as we fought our way across Northrend. Finally, in April, I caught a glimpse of a deeper, kinder side to Aggrion as he spoke tenderly to Emily following our failure to rescue her rabbit, Mr Floppy.

The next few months were lighter, perhaps the weather, perhaps our growing familiarity with Northrend, and we found ourselves donning many strange costumes, raiding the Undercity (with gnome sized standards!) and laughing until we cried whilst dressed as Scourge. Then all of a sudden, almost at the same moment (almost), we were level 80 and a new era opened for us.

We put ourselves up for hire as 'Tank' and 'Damage Dealer' and started to explore the dungeons of Northrend. But we did so with little direction or drive, not really knowing where we wanted to go, rudderless in a way.

It was with this backdrop that we ended up at the Brewfest festival in Dun Morogh, and the day that changed our relationship forever.

Not that you'd know it if you saw us today of course. We're just as light hearted as ever, always teasing one another. But beneath that our friendship is strengthened in a way that can't be captured in simple words.

As for our careers? We thought it unlikely we'd ever be accepted into the larger raids that were organised against the powerful forces of the area, and for a long while that was true, but slowly we are beginning to tag along.

Our motivation? To carry on adventuring. Together.

So what am I grateful this Winter Veil? I'm grateful for my friends and most of all for my Warrior.

Gnome Lovin'?

There are times in life where having a group of people to draw on works in your favour, and for this reason I am affiliated with a guild. One of my fellow members is a gnome warrior known as Phearless. He thinks of himself as something of a ladies gnome and has outdone himself and all of his aspiring competitors by extending an invitation to the women of the guild for some 'gnome loving'.

To my astonishment all have replied agreeing to attend!

I appreciate that I, myself, am a gnome, and as such I should find something to love about the opposite sex of my race. But...well...would you?

What's not to like? Well, here's a list!

1. They are short and dumpy
2. They almost all have beards
   
3. and what is with the hair!?
4. Their laugh is downright freaky
5. They dance like the nightclub letch

Their one redeeming quality is that they blow the best kisses. Seriously, they are cute enough to erase almost all of the above. Clearly that is the only reason my race has made it this far.

But when it comes down to it, male gnomes just don't do it for me.

So sorry Phearless, but I won't be attending your party tonight, I think I'm washing my hair!

Aggrion

I woke slowly, swimming my way to the surface of a very deep sleep. My limbs felt heavy and I was supremely relaxed. I let the feeling wash over me, luxuriating in it as my mind rediscovered the body in which it lived. I became aware that I was lying on something firm, and warm, not a pillow, it rose and fell everso slightly, everso slowly, my right arm flung over it. Then I noticed a weight, wrapped around my torso. I felt safe, drifting on the edge of sleep, the last thing I wanted to do was open my eyes, but the sensible part of me told me I should at least investigate. I sighed and allowed my eyes to float open, taking a minute to focus.

Skin. My head was resting on a bare chest, my arm draped lazily across it, just above another, bare arm, which I realised was the weight wrapped around me. The rising and falling was the slow, relaxed breathing of sleep and now that I understood, I could hear a regular heartbeat beneath my left ear. The rough blanket gave me no clue. Then I saw a sword propped against the end of the bed and couldn't help but laugh.

The arm around my waist shifted so fast I had no chance to move, and a hand clamped across my mouth.

"Ary, cute as your laugh is, I'm sleeping." came a deep voice from above my head, amused more than angry.
"Mmmmhmmmffff mhmmm mha!" I responded yanking at his hand which finally came free. "Aggrion let me go!"

I pushed his arm off me, he seemed in no great hurry to move, and sat up. In one swift motion I grabbed the blanket and, dancing away from the bed, flung it into a corner. Aggrion grunted and shifted the arm that had been around me to rest behind his head, his eyes remained closed, but the hint of a smile played on his lips. I took a moment to admire his well muscled torso as I straightened my robes and pulled on my boots. Shame those leather pants were practically glued on I thought, allowing myself a sly grin.

"Gah!" I exclaimed as the headache hit me. "What were we drinking last night?" I groaned, as much to myself as Aggrion.
"Too much." Was the reply. "You gonna give me the blanket back, little one, or do I have to get up?"
"You'll just have to get up." I replied, darting out of the room.

I needed something to wake me up, clear my head. I headed out the back door of the silent Inn, into a small square yard. The cold of Dun Morogh hit me instantly and I ran to the shower area, casting a firebolt at the water tank above as I moved. By the time I'd stripped off my robes and boots and was standing beneath the rush of water it was almost too hot. Steam rose around me and I closed my eyes, going over events of the previous day.

"It's been ages since we've kicked back and had some fun Aggrion!" I half reasoned, half pleaded.

"Hmmmf." Was the reply. Aggrion was hacking at a target dummy in the great caverns of Ironforge.

"I feel like I've been disenchanting for at least three lifetimes. I am so bored of casting the same enchant over and over, I don't see how it will teach me anything!" I complained. "And if I have to go on another stupid quest into another stupid citadel or tunnel with another bunch of rude strangers I will scream!"

Aggrion didn't even look up, just continued to jab, slice and thrust at the dummy in front of him.

"ARRRGGGGGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" I screamed.

"Ary." He looked at me with a weary expression, a slight depth of breath and colouration to his skin the only sign of his sword practice.

"It's Brewfest Aggrion! It's right outside the city gates. It's only on for two weeks a year and it's part of my culture!" I added this last bit in desperation. Of course it wasn't actually my culture, it was Dwarven and growing up around them had instilled a healthy distaste for most things Dwarf, but with so few records of Gnomish history theirs was the only culture I really had. Aggrion was well aware of this, but I also knew he believed in ceremony.

"Ok." He shrugged, sheathing his sword and rolling his shoulders. "Show me 'your' customs."

We arrived just in time for the morning "Tapping of the keg" ceremony which had all the pomp and dogma I'd grown up rebelling against. As soon as it was finished I dragged Aggrion off to try Ram Racing, not a sport for the faint hearted! I was winning right up until my ram stopped for a snack at a barrel of particularly juicy looking apples. Aggrion raced past me and across the finishing line laughing so deeply he all but fell off when his mount screeched to a halt by its own apple barrel. We staggered unsteadily around the festival stalls, sampling the many rarely seen brews and delicacies on display. Finally, pleasantly drunk and exhausted, we sat on an outcropping of snowy rock overlooking the collection of tents and stalls. As the sun began to dip behind the mountains, casting a brilliant orange-red glow over everything, the evening's Tapping of the Keg ceremony played out once again beneath us. After the days raucous behaviour it was nice to simply sit and contemplate the world. Silence was something I was used to with Aggrion so I just enjoyed the feeling of the alcohol in my veins and the beauty of the sun on the snow.

The moment was shattered by shouting from below. "Invasion! Gatecrashers! The Dark Iron dwarves are here! Get them! Grab a tankard!". Aggrion was on his feet in an instant, sword in hand. I rose a second later and forced his hand down with my two. "Look!" I said, pointing at the fight that was breaking out below. No weapons were drawn, the two sides were instead throwing empty tankards at one another. I began to laugh and to make my way down the slope. "Come on Aggrion! Lets join in! We must save Brewfest!" I chanted as I slipped and slided down. Aggrion chuckled, sheathed his sword and followed me into the fray.

And it was so much fun. Of course we had to drink whatever was in the tankards before throwing them at our targets, well before the fight ended I was unable to see clearly, let alone be sure my tankard was hitting my target. Maybe that's why I lost sight of Aggrion, maybe that's why I missed what happened until it was too late.

I heard a yell coming from behind one of the Dark Iron's Mole Machines, a horrible fear filled shout that was nothing like the good natured banter that had been taking place. Along with most of the other revellers I ran to see what was going on and was aghast to see Aggrion beating one of the Dark Iron dwarves with a bloodied tankard. Two Dark Iron dwarves and a few of the festival goers were trying to pull him back, but I could see the berserker rage had him and I knew they didn't stand a chance. I noticed the city guards making their way through the crowd and I called to him frantically but he was oblivious. The dwarf before him sagged as he turned on those at his back, the look on his face terrifying, and a desperate plan came to me. I summoned Jhorlia as quickly as I could.

"Yes Mistress?" she sneered.

"Jhorlia, Aggrion needs our help. Stop the guards now, don't hurt them, just stop them." I spoke fast and she took in the scene, a look of concern crossing her normally hard features. She nodded and made her way towards the guards.

"Well, hello boys!" I heard her say, cracking her whip.

I had to act fast, the strength coursing through Aggrion's body wouldn't last much longer and the crowd were beginning to organise themselves. I summoned my magic and pictured the most terrible evils and miseries that I had seen or imagined and sent them racing towards Aggrion.

"I'm so sorry!" I gasped as the spell left my lips.

The effect was instantaneous. Aggrion, went sheet white and ran. The crowd were dazed, I saw my opportunity and cast again. I let the images flood out from me touching all those around me and the fear and panic spread like wildfire. Complete chaos ensued. I called Jhorlia and we ran, following Aggrion's path out of the festival and into the snowy wastes of Dun Morogh.

The noise of the panic stricken festival faded until all we could hear was the crunch of snow beneath our feet and the faint crackle of iced trees. I knew my fear spell wouldn't have lasted long but I had no idea if it would break the berserker rage permanently. Aggrion could have doubled back to the festival or have found someone else to focus his rage on. Luckily the recent snowfall and the rarity of travellers in this area was in our favour and we could make out what we hoped to be his tracks. Even so it took us an hour to find him.

He was sitting at the base of a tree, sword in hand, head bowed. I don't know when Jhorlia left, I think once she saw he was safe. I walked over and knelt in front of him and touched his cold, cold hands.

"Aggrion?" I said quietly. "Aggrion it's Ary."
"Yes." came the reply, but he didn't look up.
"Aggrion, look at me." The concern clear in my voice.
"No Ary, I cannot."
"It's okay. I'm okay. I'm sorry."
"You're sorry!?" His head shot up, his eyes pierced me, reddened from the berserker rage, the fear, the flight, the cold, or tears, I didn't know which.

I flinched instinctively, pulling my hand from his, regretting the movement immediately as I saw the pain flash across is face.

"Yes, I'm sorry. I had to fear you, you were out of control, the guards were coming, the people were going to overwhelm you!" I pleaded.
"Ary. You did the right thing." he paused. "Did I kill him?"

I knew he meant the Dark Iron dwarf. What did it matter, we had killed many more in the past, but yes, somehow this was different.

"I don't know. I just followed you."

Aggrion sighed and lowered his head again.

"Will you tell me what happened?" I asked tentatively, finding it harder than ever to gauge his mood.

"Yes, I owe you that much at least." he replied in a flat, emotionless voice.

He leaned back against the tree, avoiding eye contact and stared, unseeingly, into the distance, his hands still gripping the hilt of his sword so tightly the blood was fading away from his knuckles. I wanted so much to comfort him, but I felt unsure, he gave the impression of a cornered animal, calm now, but something, anything, could tip him over the edge. So I settled on a nearby fallen branch and waited.

I thought he'd changed his mind, when suddenly he cleared his throat and began to speak in the same flat tones.

"Long, before we met I was working as a mercenary. I moved from job to job, doing what was needed, helping those I could and I ended up in Ironforge. This was not long after your ancestors had been driven from Gnomeregon and the Third War was still a recent memory.

I came across the Thorium Brotherhood and was amazed at their blacksmithing skills. I spent time working with them and had nothing but admiration for their work. They were, at the time, liaising with the Dwarves of Ironforge to protect the city and themselves from further attacks from the Dark Iron dwarves, their less amiable brothers. For the Brotherhood the Dark Irons were a constant menace and most definitely too close for comfort. For Ironforge they were an ever-present threat. So they enlisted people like me to make regular trips into the Blackrock Mountain and disrupt the Dark Irons in the hope of delaying, if not preventing, any attacks.

I was asked to join one such group. We knew it would be risky and all of us were prepared. Or so we thought."

Aggrion paused, his eyes flickering to me briefly, but away too quickly for me to give him any reassurance. I stayed where I was, afraid to break the spell, he had never talked about his past like this before, and I longed to hear more.

"There must have been an informer. Someone must have told them we were coming. We were deep in the tunnels beneath the mountain, it had been difficult, but we had got through with only minor injuries. Then suddenly we were overrun. Dark Iron dwarves came at us from all angles. They didn't just attack us, they weren't just defending themselves. They were rabid, insane....

....I, I, can't describe it. I'm not sure I can even think about it enough to do so." He looked at me, his eyes pleading.

"Ary, they ripped the group apart. I don't mean figuratively, I mean literally. Limb from limb....I fought as long as I could then myself and five others ran. We were cornered...." he trailed off into silence, shaking his head as though to dislodge the memories.

"I came to barely able to breath, suffocated by a pile of bloody bodies. I have no idea how long I was unconscious for, nor how long I lay there listening before I slowly dug my way out of the twisted corpses of my friends. I don't know how I made it out alive. Maybe their guard was down, maybe we had made it closer to the exit than we had realised, but eventually I stepped into the sunlight of Searing Gorge and made my way to the Thorium Brotherhood camp.

They took me in and cleaned me up. I think I was with them for months rather than weeks. But its a strange time for me...." he trailed off again.

"I can't begin to imagine Aggrion." I didn't have the words to express how I felt, to comfort him, to heal this pain. I was suddenly overwhelmed by how little I truly knew this Elf, by what horrors he'd experienced in his long long lifetime.

"We all have dark times and light times Ary, and we deal with them. I thought I had put this behind me. But something snapped today at the festival, I was surrounded by Iron Dwarves and the laughter suddenly sounded to me like screams for help. I was back there, under Blackrock Mountain, I was there with the people around me dying and I had to do something this time. I had to." His voice cracked and he bowed his head.

I couldn't stop myself, I ran to him and flung my arms around his broad shoulders, burying my face in his neck.

"It's okay Aggrion, I'm here, you're safe, it's okay." To my surprise he didn't shrug me off, he seemed to sink into my arms, to let me hold him, and that is how we stayed for a long while.

Eventually I managed to persuade him that we couldn't stay out all night and we walked to the nearest inn. We drank and ate and took a room as though it was a normal night. He barely spoke for the rest of the evening, not so unusual. We were drunk and tired and fell into bed gratefully.

"Ary? Ary are you awake?" Aggrion whispered.
"Nearly." I replied.
"Come here." And he gathered me close, and I fell asleep listening to the sound of his heart beating.

The cold water made me gasp and I stopped the flow, wrapping myself quickly in my cloak and dressing as fast as possible. The other inhabitants of the inn were stirring and when I stepped back inside Aggrion waved me over to to a table in the corner.

"I ordered breakfast." he said.
"Thanks" I sat down. Knowing that things would be exactly the same as always and yet never the same again.

Interesting Times

There is an ancient curse of lost origins, "May you live in interesting times". Sometimes I wonder that this was cast upon the concept of the game of chance known colloquially as 'PUGing'. Certain quests may require additional members in a party, so a 'Pick Up Group' of helpful strangers is sometimes the only option. There is rarely a shortage of people to choose from, but the resulting group can vary dramatically and the experience can be entertaining or downright miserable.

On this particular occasion we had decided to venture into the Violet Hold, in Dalaran. The Hold hosts a number of extremely dangerous prisoners. Recently, however, Malygos has sent supporters of the Blue Dragonflight to enter the Hold via magical portals with the hope of loosing the prisoners on the city. On our arrival it was clear that the Kirin Tor guards were close to being overwhelmed and they wasted no time in leaving us to it. We worked hard to keep on top of the constant flow of creatures through portal after portal. Aggrion did his best to hold the attention of our foe, but his health was wildly unstable and we feared for his, and subsequently our, life on more than one occaision. I was deeply concerned when I glanced at our priest to see him gazing vaguely into the distance. Finally a different beast appeared, immune to our attacks he ignored us and calmly released one of the prisoners. Without waiting to see the outcome he disappeared, leaving us to defend ourselves (and all of Dalaran). We just managed to best the creature, but Aggrion was looking significantly the worse for ware. During a brief pause he made his way to me.

"I'm not sure about this healer." he muttered.

"Are you having any problems?" I asked the priest.

He seemed to ignore me, staring at his feet.

"Hang in there, we'll make it through." I whispered to Aggrion without much confidence.

But we didn't. We fended off the next set of attackers but as another prisoner was loosed, our healer was simply unable to keep up with the beating Aggrion was taking and we were forced to retreat.

We regrouped outside of the Hold and re-entered and once again the guards left us to it and again we battled the creatures that exited the portals. Once again a prisoner was released and once again we bested him by the skin of our teeth.

"I don't think we can do this." Aggrion said under his breath.

He was bleeding and bruised. I did my best to help him bandage himself, I wished, not for the first time, that my first aid skills were better. I glanced over at the Holy Priest who was standing a little way from the group looking distracted, then continued my task murmering my agreement.

Suddenly the healer glanced around at the rest of the party.

"I have to go. Sorry!" he said and without waiting to hear our response he cast a spell and disappeared.

"Oh..." I gasped.

"I'm hearthstoning!" cried Aggrion, already casting.

"Ow!" I groaned as a portal guardian struck me hard. The last thing I saw was a slightly guilty expression on Aggrion's face as he teleported to safety.

He was the only one who made it out safely. The rest of us gathered ourselves and met with him at the doorway to the Hold. We still had a job to do, but we couldn't go on without a healer. So we began to ask around once again. To our muted delight and surprise we found someone who was willing to help within a few minutes.

As we entered the Violet Hold for a third time we were somewhat subdued. Not so our new Druid healer.

"Warlock." He addressed me by class, not name, a pet hate of mine.

"Great" I thought, "another unlucky roll!"

"Just go ahead and use Life Tap whenever you want, I'll have you covered at all times." He finished, flashing me a winning smile and winking.

I almost choked on my Firecracker Salmon. I'm sure I blushed an unflattering shade of red. I shot a glance at Aggrion who was clearly too busy scowling at the prisoners to have noticed my reaction.

"Um, er, thanks!" I managed to respond.

"Lets get going." Aggrion said gruffly and charged at the first guardian.

I had never expected a tree to be quite so energetic! Through the entire encounter the Druid bounced and danced his way around the prison, seeming unperturbed by his dismal surroundings or the very real danger we were in. He was like our own personal sunbeam as he waved his branches and rustled his leaves. Aggrion's wounds were disappearing almost faster than they could be inflicted, he later commented that he barely even felt the attacks so quickly were they healed!

As we laid the blue dragon, Cyanigosa to rest, we thanked him for his help. Clearly skilled at healing, it was astonishing the difference that one single individual can make to such an experience.

So, PUGing. A way to meet the best and worst people. Definitely an interesting experience, not always a pleasant one, but it is how I met almost all of my friends, so it's perhaps more of a blessing than a curse.

Endings and Beginnings

We made it! My warrior companion, Aggrion, and I hit level 80 within seconds of one another. This was by no means an easy feat and required significant amounts of co-ordination and planning. The final moment was timed and we counted down the seconds to talking to our quest giver, knowing that his reward would be the last we needed.

"One, two, three...." counted Aggrion.

(I know, I was surprised he could too!)

And then it all happened in a rush.

The wings of a great drake darkened the sky as another adventurer swooped down to converse with Thassarian.

"Wait!" I urged.
"Go!" Shouted Aggrion.

The familiar yellow glow surrounded my friend and I took just a split second to decide to go ahead and speak with Thassarian myself. I was instantly blinded by a bright light that filled me with an almost overwhelming sense of achievement. The weight of months of adventuring, working ever towards this moment lifted from my shoulders. I couldn't help but be deeply proud that we had made it so far, and done so together, a solid team.

But of course even the best laid plans of Warlocks and Warriors go awry. The interruption from our fellow adventurer, Xr had caused confusion and ruined a fantastic photo opportunity.


Even so, Aggrion appearing as a half-elf/half-gorilla beast does make for amusing if not epic imagery :)


So now we begin to explore the heroic instances of Northrend. This will be a true test of our skill and mettle and we will embark on this next phase of our careers with interest!