Finding Peace

[Vilmah]

She had it all set up.

Vilmah took a deep breath and looked over her utensils. A ceramic bowl, a ceramic water jar, a whisk, a laquer container, a wooden spoon, an iron cauldron heating water over an open fire, and a red napkin hanging folded from her belt. She was wearing only a gray robe with no sleeves, which came to mid-thigh. There was no jewelry, and in fact, exept for the robe, belt, and a pair of white socks, she had nothing else on her. Even Vilmah's hair was tied back into a bun instead of her usual ponytail. The tattooes around her ankles were perhaps the only decoration she still had.

Looking over the items, she thought about the people she'd been practicing with. A fer months ago, her grandmother told her that she'd be learning how to make tea. She had no idea that it meant a lengthly preparation, ceremonial movements, or tea that resembled green paint.

What she found was possibly the calmest and most tranquil thing she'd ever encountered. A ceremony that brought people and their thoughts together. When she practiced with her grandmother, she tried to focus on doing things right. She never realized what an impact it would have on other people. She'd even brought Witness to tears.

It was something Vilmah wanted to share with the world, although she figured it should be done one step at a time. First, invite a few friends. Then, maybe others would follow.

For now, she knelt in front of the utensils and waited for another friend.

[Jeedup]

Jeedup was mearly passing by when he noticed Vilmah in the distance, setting up what seemed like a small ceremony. He stopped in his tracks and leaned against a nearby tree, observing her.

He had seen her do this same act with Diomades and Lovely once, and new of similar ceremonies done by the priests and family members of the Dark Spear tribe. He could smell the brewing tea from a short distance, but it wasn't the prespect of a free drink that made him stop, it was Vilmah.

Though only a few years younger than he, Vilmah had impressed him on several occasions. He had remembered when he first heard of her from Grisch, way before he disappeared. When she gained command of Sanctuary, Jeedup was there to introduce himself, and offer assistance when needed. What started as a simple link between guilds had developed into a lasting friendship and sense of family with Vilmah and her guildmates.

Although she was not a soldier in service to the Horde, Jeedup mentiond her in passing to Nazgrel and many of his commanders when he thought a helpful word might do the trick. He had kept his on her, watching her accomplishments, and knew she could go far.

Snapping himself out of this little reverie, he leaned off the tree and walked towards he. Whe he reached her, he plunged his longsword into the dirt next to him, and kneeled down.

"Hey there Vil, hows it goin'?"

[Bloodscream]

"Tea?" He thought as he slammed the ethereum avenger in the face with his shield and stepped in to swipe at it with his axe. The alien creature, a blurry mass of cloth strips and energy trails, let out a keening wail and it's blades vanished. They reappeared behind Bloodscream who deftly stepped between them and back forcing all his enemies, disembodied or not to face him.

Bloodscream knew of many ceremonies, some of which involved tea. The tea in question was an herbal infusion, used in certain rituals of both the shamans and the warriors of old. "Tea..." he repeated to himself and he knocked one of the flying blades aside and dug his axe into the creatures face, causing it to shriek and in a flash, collapse into a clatter of steel and silk as the cloth that had surrounded it fell to the ground and the force that animated the blades failed, dropping them unceremoniously onto the rocks.
He ducked behind a stone outcropping and rummaged through the creatures remains with his axe finding nothing but a few coins.

"Tea..." he mumbled to himself and pulled out his pocketwatch. The watch itself was obviously hand made and of questionable craftsmanship. It was scuffed and dented, rivets visible here and there. The pin to wind it had fallen off long ago and Bloodscream pulled it from his earring and wound the watch, taking secondary notice of the time.

"Tea." he said out loud upon seeing the hour.

Bloodscream clutched his hearthstone and it hummed at his command. Moments later the world around him faded into white light and the humming filled his ears to such a fevered pitch, he blacked out for a moment. When he shook his senses awake, he was in Shattrath. He fired out of the Inn like a shot, fighting the natural urge to place kick the gnome in the doorway and choosing instead to step over it.

He rubbed his hands together and the twin runes tattooed upon his palms started to heat up. In his left, the sigil of Uthek, first among skyriders, those who wear his brand have mastered the art of riding. In his right, the rune Malstrom had revealed as symbolizing his steeds name, Skywise. The runes heated up in seconds and with a sudden blast of wind, Bloodscream was picked up into the air and dropped onto his steed as it appeared beneath him.

Bloodscream kicked and Skywise fired off into the air the swishing of his tail making its armor rattle. Bloodscream grinned grom behind his Tankatronics as Skywise soared over the city.It was at about that time he realized he really didn't know where he was going. The grin slid slowly off his face and tumbled helplessly towards the city below. Sheepish made an appearance and grabbed ahold of the orcs face. Bloodscream slowly reached up and brushed the stone around his neck.

"Errrr... where am I going?" he asked her, making Skywise hover there a moment.

[Vilmah]

Vilmah felt her heart skip as a familliar voice came through her hearthstone. She was looking at Jeedup at the time, so rather then have him confuse her expression for something embarassing, she chose to look away a moment before answering.

"..Nagrand. Giant floating island thingie above the lake. The one with the apple tree and the..."

She glanced at the long-rotted corpse to her left.

"Skeleton."

Turning back to Jeedup, she smiled brightly. He was a welcome distraction to all of the calmness, even if he himself was probably one of the calmest people she knew. An arms warrior, he was at the very least, a good soldier. At the most, he was a great friend, and despite the fact that he did not wear her colors, he followed her ideals willingly. It was that which made her trust him all the more.

Extending a hand to her left, she lay her palm flat in the air. It felt awkward not wearing armor, but the breeze was nice on her bare arm. "Would you like to have a seat, Jeedup? I'm making tea."

She wiggled her nose to add to the request.

"..kinda needed a distraction."

[Bloodscream]

Bloodscream sailed high over Nagrand enjoying the quiet. It still bothered him that large chunks of the landscape hung lazily in the air. Conveniently, one of the larger chunks, imbued with sudden insight, had taken upon itself to host a pretty young orc Bloodscream was rather fond of. This endeared the stone to Bloodscream somewhat but not really enough not to think it really should come back down to earth.

Skywise circled slowly down and around as Bloodscream surveyed the area. Confident there were no Alliance pigs in the immediate vicinity, Skywise landed on the large stone.

Vilmah was there along with assorted items and a troll warrior Bloodscream did not recognize. Bloodscream sat quietly on Skywise.

[Vilmah]

When she heard the telltale thump of Skywise landing on the rock, accompanied by the ever present clang of metal against metal, Vilmah knew that two things were very likely; either she was under attack (and rightfully so, because who would be stupid enough to be kneeling unarmored in Nagrand?), or Bloodscream had arrived. A quick glance to her side both answered her question and allowed her to sigh in relief.

Instead of jumping up from the ground and giving the warrior one of her bone-crushing hugs, Vilmah remembered her manners and remained kneeling before the brazier and utensils. Clearing her throat, she extended a hand to wards him, and held it palm up into the air, indicating the place beside Jeedup. "Please, join me for tea?"

It was a polite phrase, and somewhat soul-less she realized, but it's what her grandmother had taught her to say before every tea ceremony, so she did it. However, she understood the utter confusion that this entire show was creating, so rather than leave both the troll and the orc hanging, Vilmah decided to explain.

"I know it prolly sounds kinda silly.. but lemme explain," she said as she folded her red napkin on her knee, using strange gestures that could have resembled martial arts movements if she were doing it faster and against someone's throat. "See, my grandmother told me that it was important that as a warrior, I learn to do a tea ceremony. She said that old blade masters would do this for one another, as a sign of respect and friendship to their fellow warriors. At first I thought it sounded kinda weird.. but then I watched her do it, and I realized that all of her movements and gestures were reminiscent of the way one handles a sword, or loads an arrow, or all kinds of other warrior-like things."

She tucked the napkin into her belt.

"Then I started learning it too, and I noticed my sword handling improved. Then I tried doing the tea ceremony for my friends, and I saw that they all had a reaction to it. A good one. So I figured.. I should show it to another warrior. I think that as descendants of the blade masters, we understand the significance of it all."

[Bloodscream]

She was awfully cute when she babbled. Bloodscream lost himself in the way she bit her lip when she paused, she was obviously very serious about whatever it was she was saying. The robe she was wearing was awfully short Blood though as his eyes traced the line of her thigh. She had stopped talking and the silence suddenly reminded Bloodscream that perhaps listening to what she had been saying might have been a good idea.

She wasn't looking at him expectantly so she probably had not asked him a question. He took Gorehowl from his back and stepped towards her. She was standing at teamistress position and she didn't react negatively when he approached. Bloodscream thought perhaps he should pay more attention to how short that robe was... TO WHAT SHE WAS SAYING... as he sat by the fire, placing his weapon on his left hand side, handle facing towards himself.

In the old tradition there are four ways a warrior can place his weapon when having tea. Placing Gorehowl on his left with handle towards himself symbolized trust as he placed his weapon away from his right and stronger arm with the handle at the ready, showing respect for the hosts abilities as a warrior.

He sat quietly and said nothing, only the smallest hint of a smile on his face.

[Vilmah]

She fought hard to resist the urge to clasp her hands together giddily. Instead, Vilmah cleared her throat and tried to look away from his apprehensive smile. Taking note of the way he placed Gorehowl, she also tried not to focus too much on the legendary weapon. The axe that Grom Hellscream himself had used when he fought with her father. Bloodscream carried it, and with it the memories and stories of battles that her father was too ashamed to repeat. She mentioned before, more than half a year ago now, that he reminded her of a father figure. That memory, combined with all of the familliar logistics of the tea ceremony, brought a little more color to her cheeks.

He knows what he's doing.. She realized, which made the colors brighten a considerable more ammount. It's okay. I know what I'm doing.

Taking a deep breath, she began.

It was as simple as doing dishes, to clean out a bowl, but it was done as a sign of respect for the person receiving tea. Of course it was already cleaned thoroughly before hand, but the act of rinsing and wiping it with a snow white piece of linen cloth was the hosts way of saying, "Even if it was clean before, it's even cleaner now. All this I do for you."

Her hands and wrists spoke words that she didn't, as she did what would otherwise be simple actions with her back as rigid as a wooden board. She kept her eyes ahead, so she wouldn't be distrated by Bloodscream's ever present goofy expressions. When finally the bowl was clean, she removed the red napkin from her belt and ceremoniously wiped down the wooden spoon. Her utensils thoroughly inspected and cleaned for the benefit of her guest, Vilmah finally prepared tea.

She opened the black laquer jar to her right, which revealed a bright green powder. Vilmah tried not to think about how similar in color the tea was to Bloodscream's skin, as she removed two scoops and placed it at the bottom of her ceramic bowl. This was the part where here mind went blank. Forgetting where she was and who she was doing this for, Vilmah's movements became less rigid and more airy. Her wrists, as if they had been splinted straight against her arm, remained unbending as she took the wooden ladle from the top of the iron kettle and scooped out hot water.

She weilded the ladle like a sword. It moved through the air heavilly, as if it weighed a hundred pounds. When she placed the ladle on a tiny chunk of bamboo on the ground, it made a little "thunk!" sound, and she dropped the handle.

Taking the whisk at her left, she (again with unbent wrists), faced it downwards and mixed the powder with the scalding hot water. It made quick little swooshing noises, bringing the smell of strong tea into the air. When it was sufficiently mixe, complete with pale green froth (and no "fish eye" bubbles, like grandmother taught her), she placed the whisk on it's back and picked up the bowl.

It was very hot. Even for a warrior, she had less than the usual ammount of calluses, mostly due to the fact that she moisturized daily. This was unfortunate, because it made handling the hot bowl slightly uncomfortable. She pushed the discomfort away and turned the bowl, so that it's "front" was facing Bloodscream. She then placed the bowl in the grass in front of him, and sat up straight.

The smell was somewhat dizzying. She pushed that thought away too, and waited instead for him to drink. Remembering her manners, she faced back towards the brazier, hands resting expectantly on her lap.

The smell was dizzying. Was it getting hot, out there?

[Bloodscream]

Bloodscream sat silently, eyes fixed firmly on her movements. Bloodscream smiled to himself, the orcs were a weird lot. He watched her symbolically cut him to ribbons and couldn't help but wonder exactly who it was first conjured this ceremony. Her wrists stayed straight as she prepared the tea, a far away look in her eyes.

Bloodscream smiled openly knowing she wasn't paying attention. She was in the Ulek-Ak, the "no mind", a state of practiced focus in which all but the task at hand vanished. It might not seem very impressive while making tea but it was the state of awareness all true orc warriors sought. A state where consciousness surrendered to instinct and training and floated above the body, looking down, granting the warrior an increased awareness of the immediate area and an calmness in the heat of battle.

She finished and places her hands on her lap, waiting. He thought perhaps his gaze lingered too long on her lap and with a small start, reached forwards with his left hand, still armored, another show of respect. He took the pungent tea and brought it to his lips. He paused for the briefest of moments, enough to take in the aroma but not enough to take a look at what he was about to drink, a sign of trust. He downed the tea.

[Vilmah]

She didn't watch him drink, but she knew what he was doing, and it made her very happy. Going over the next few steps, Vilmah thought about how she would take back the bowl, rinse it, turn to him and finish speaking.. but something else happened instead.

The strange feeling of warmth that had been approaching her began seeping it's way into her eyes and throat. She recognized this feeling, because she'd passed out more than once. Fighting the urge to go unconscious, she smiled demurely once again and took the empty bowl from Bloodscream. It was still warm, which was not helping her situation. When she went back to her rigid position, the bowl in her hands, she couldn't fight it back anymore.

Vilmah knelt in the grass, straight and still as a tree, her eyes straight ahead as she clutched the bowl in her hands.

------------

The view of Nagrand faded into a glistening white landscape. It was a familliar sight, she'd been in Winterspring and Alterac Valley many times, but she was very curious why she was seeing this instead of Nagrand. Wasn't she supposed to have been making tea?

It was very quiet. Usually there was the sound of wildlife, or wind, or even the hooves of a passerby running down the road. There was nothing out here, except the blinding sting of cold air as it bit into her face. Something was in her hands. Was it the tea bowl?

No, it was made of cloth.

Vilmah allowed herself to glance down, and looked at the cloth in her hands. It was small and black, although wet with..

A trail of red went from her hands into the snow. She followed the trail with her eyes, which stained the beautiful white, and was finally led to a pale blue arm. It was so pale, it almost blended in with the snow. It was covered in scars and black leather armor. It was lifeless and the trail went from the arm towards a thick neck, heavilly chorded with veins that had been severed. The neck led to a face that was so recognizable, Vilmah held her breath in realization of what she was seeing.

"..Noj...."

She ventured glance at the rest of the landscape, and saw bodies. She couldn't identify the rest, so covered were they in bloodstained snow. All she knew was that she recognized these people. They were all Horde, and they were all friends. Nojinbu's eyepatch in her hands felt heavy, and she gripped it tightly. She gripped it tighter and tighter until...

------------

The bowl in her hands was made of a thick ceramic material, not easilly shattered. However in the few moments that Vilmah staired straight ahead, she didn't keep this in mind as it broke into large pieces in her hands. The sound startled her from whatever she had been looking at, allowing her to finally breathe and let out a gasp of terror.

Kneeling in the grass, she tried to catch her breath. Tiny rivulets of blood ran down from her palms to her forearms, staining the white robe.

[Jeedup]

((wow, I dont pay attention for a few days and BAM! Now I have no clue whats going on))

[Bloodscream]

Bloodscream raised an eyebrow as Vilmah lost herself in the ritual. He thought perhaps she had lost herself a little too deep when she paused but the unfocused faraway look in her eyes hinted to more than a tea ceremony.

She broke the bowl with a sharp snap and her hands closed on the shards, cutting her. She made no sound but bled quietly. Bloodscream said nothing, he reached into his belt and pulled out a netherweave cloth bandage.

"Give here." he said softly taking her hands in his.

[Vilmah]

His voice removed her from her revere. It took a few seconds for Vilmah to comprehend what he'd said, his voice was like a deep rumble that hit the pit of her stomach and forced her to remember to breathe again. Nagrand was a sea of green around them, and the smell of green was still in the air as she slowly looked down to his hands. His green was covered in gauntlets, but hers wasn't. It was a pale and muddy sort of green.

Her eyes remained fixated on the color as she bit down on her lips. The cuts stung, but moreso did the memory of what she'd just seen.

"..sorry," she murmured.

[Bloodscream]

"No need for apologies, but this must be one of them new ceremonies, there was remarkably less breaking of things last time, I think I like yours better." He said with a smile, knowing something was wrong.

"Sooo...what happened?"

[Vilmah]

"Um.."

Twisting her mouth to one side, Vilmah tried to come up with an explanation. It wasn't easy, considering that dreams usually happened at night. And while you were sleeping. She wiggled her fingers in his grasp, still wondering what words would be appropriate.

"..I think I had a.. weird.. daydream. It felt like I passed out just then, but if I passed out I'd have been on the ground. This was more like.. I was seeing through the landscape and I saw so far that I saw something else."

She sucked in her cheeks, remembering the cloth in her hands, and the blood in the snow.

"It wasn't anything good."

[Bloodscream]

Bloodscream nodded knowingly.

"Visions... been there done that. Mal says the spirits of my ancestors call to me from the beyond because I am the last of their kin, I just think I have weird dreams sometimes and ya, they come during the waking hours sometimes too."

Bloodscream could clearly see she was shaken.

"You can't read these things at face value, spirits aren't very clear I'm afraid." Bloodscream chuckled softly.

"You should seek the shamen, interpreting visions... no easy task and SO easy to get wrong..."

[Vilmah]

"I don't know if I feel like interpreting them.." she muttered quietly, rubbing her fingers together. "To tell you the truth I'd rather just forget what I saw."

Vilmah wiggled her nose and sat up again, looking down at the shattered bowl. She gingerly picked up the pieces, holding them up to inspect the dark brown clay that had been fashioned into a bowl hundreds of years ago.

"..I can't believe I broke it. My grandmother is going to kill me. I'm sorry my mind drifted, I really kinda wanted this to be less of a crazy thing and more of a peaceful thing for once."

She put the pieces of the bowl into the mizusashi.

"I must have terrible luck."

[Bloodscream]

Bloodscream grinned.

"Ya you must cause you're narrow ass is stuck on some rock with me."

"Ya can't let visions spook ya and you must never let them bring you down. Bottom line is, no matter what, you're getting insight into something. What it is and what it means doesn't matter, you're getting information that is relevant and normally not available, that's a good thing."

Bloodscream sounded like he spoke from experience but he also spoke in a manner than betrayed perhaps these were not his words.

"Now whether it is speaking of good or ill omens matters not for even if it is ill news, wouldn't you rather have forewarning?"

Bloodscream leaned back, unfolding his legs in front of him and leaning on his hands.

"Now the trap is in trying to take it at face value. Don't. Warriors are not meant to interpret visions. Seek the shamen's wisdom."

Bloodscream could see it was doing little to comfort her.

"Look little Mag'Har, I once had a vision of standing on a cliff looking out at the surf and the setting sun. I remember the wind and the smell of the sea, then I smelled smoke and a crow landed on my shoulder and I snapped out of it... my point is I felt really good about the vision for some reason, maybe the wind, the sea so I didn't tell Mal about it until like three days later... which turns out was too late, a friend of ours Blackbird had died. Mal tried to explain to me what it had all meant, the bird, the smells, the sea... You'd think the crow would be Blackbird right but no apparently the setting sun was Blackbird...it clearly only made sense to him, its in his blood, he hears it on the wind, in the waters, in the mountains heart... do yourself a favor, don't try and sort visions out yourself, that way lies only disappointment and confusion, talk to a shaman."

Bloodscream's eyes seem to be focused on something far away.

"Blackbird had to die for me to learn that... don't be me."

[Vilmah]

Vilmah watched a bird in flight at Bloodscream reminisced. She allowed his wisdom to give her some insight as to what she should do, but for some reason, talking to Diomades didn't feel right. She wondered if maybe there was another shaman she could consult, someone that she didn't often speak to..

Instinctively, she reached out and took his hand. He was sitting a little far, so it forced her to lean on her other hand, her body stretched somewhat as she propped herself on her knees. Vilmah looked at him reassuringly. "Alright, I'll take your advice. I'm sorry about your friend, but yiu know, it was awful nice of you to have had that memory all to yourself. He must have had a very special place in your heart."

[Bloodscream]

"Blackbird?" Bloodscream chuckled softly.
"Nah Black bird was a dirtbag, he stole my axe and then went and got himself perished before I could beat it's hiding place out of him."

"The point really is don't interpret visions yourself... I LOVED that axe."

Bloodscream looked off into the distance, remembering it's heft, it's edge... his first axe, how he had loved that axe.

[Vilmah]

Vilmah grinned and giggled, thinking about her first axe. She didn't like it much, it was heavy as all hell, but she was determined to weild it just as god as anyone else.

"That's really adorable.." she said, shaking her head.

Noticing their solitude on the floating rock, she sucked in her cheeks and moved away from the brazier and utensils, sitting beside Bloodscream instead. Vilmah propped her head on hands, allowing the sun to hit the back of her legs as she let out a sigh.

"Well, sorry about interrupting the tea ceremony with craziness.. but thanks for coming, Blood. It really does mean a lot to me. I guess you can go at anytime, if you like."

[Bloodscream]

Bloodscream smiled.

"No big plans, can't relax TOO much since any Alliance with a flying mount could happen by at any sec but until one does and I need to get up and put an axe in his head, I can sit."

Bloodscream produced a thin, square wooden box adorned with shamanic runes. He whispered "cherry" and opened it and there was a piping hot cherry pie.

"Pie?" he asked with a smile before grabbing a large piece with his bear hand and jamming it into his face. He held the open box and it's half-pie bounty towards Vilmah while trying his best to apparently paint his entire head in cherry filling. Bloodscream eating pie was not the height of etiquette.

[Vilmah]

Vilmah giggled again, shaking her head. His face covered in gelatinous red cherry filling had a way of making her red in the face, too.

"No thanks.. don't want my butt getting any bigger like you said, remember?"

She stuck out her tongue playfully.

"Besides, that crust was likely made with eggs and milk.. you know I'm a vegan."