Dinner Conversation

[Ninorra]

She had busied herself over the past few hours with making Bloodstone manor shine as it once had. Vicailde had no hired help, and to Ninorra's knowledge, he actually enjoyed doing housework. She had pleasantly asked him to tend to the garden, which was becoming busy with bright orange tiger lilies, while she herself dusted and straightened their home.

The dining room had many little surprises. Trapped in corners and niches, she found reminders of Vicailde's temper. Pieces of broken plates and glasses lie hidden, until she actually moved the furniture to make sure that the dining room would be completely free of it. When she was finished clearing away the shards of glass and ceramic, she set to setting the table with silverware and china that had probably not seen use for at least a hundred years.

Ninorra's cheeks flushed with pleasure at the sight of her work coming into fruition. After setting the table and straightening the cutlary, she took a steb back and smiled proudly.

"Well, if Qabian doesn't show then at least Vicailde and I will have a lovely night together," she mused.

Retreating into the kitchen, the warlock began to prepare a meal. She had learned to cook from Lord DiSantos' cooks, several years ago. Their steady hands were like music when they delicately prepared pheasants, quails, and other small birds which made Ninorra's favorite meals. Tonight, it would be ducks. She positively adored ducks.

[Vicailde]

There was a soft thumping as Vicailde began to knock his work boots free of dirt before venturing inside on his bare feet, placing the dirt laden boot in their usual spot and he walked slowl up the stairs before he disappeared into the maser bedroom.

Soon the sound of running water began to fill the house.

Several minutes later Vicailde emerged in his usual black dress suit and he cleared his throat before descending the stairs.

[Ninorra]

Ninorra was still wearing her casual apprentice robes when she began cooking, but found them encumbersome and took them off midway through. They hung on the door, allowing her to work in a pair of simple cloth pants and a rather revealing white shirt. She hummed as she worked, every so often adding seasoning to the asparagus or checking the duck, to make sure it would not be overcooked. When the time had come to simply wait for them to bake, she took a step back and admired the kitchen she'd cleaned earlier.

It was then that she noticed Vicailde, on the staircase. She'd never seen him dressed so niceley, in his new young looking body. It brought goosebumps to her skin, his bleached white hair a brilliant contrast to the black fabric.

"..you look amazing," she said breathilly.

[Vicailde]

"Hmm?" Vicailde looked down at himself and laughed lightly. "Well I did have my suit cleaned recently.. and I think these gloves are a bit much.."

His hands were now encased in a pair of black leather dress gloves which he held up to show her before blinking at her.

"hrrmmm.. y.." He blinked at her outfit but decided not to say anything, after all. "You sure he will show? He didn't seem the type to accept a dining invintation when I met him." His voice had an odd mixture of irritation and hope.

[Ninorra]

Ninorra gave a light shrug.

"If he doesn't come, then we'll simply have a pleasant evening to ourselves. Either way, I'm looking foreward to getting out of these clothes and changing into something else.."

She glanced over her husband again, still smiling.

"..or if he doesn't show, I could just get out of these clothes and leave it at that."

[Vicailde]

Vicailde smiled broadly and rose a hand to hold her jaw lightly, the leathery feel of the gloves sliding smoothly across her cheek for a moment.

"Well.. i've distracted you from your cooking for long enough.." He starts after a moment, clearing his throat as he lowers his hand. "Anything you need me to do while we wait?"

[Ninorra]

"Why don't you keep an eye on things, while I go upstairs and change," she said before reluctantly pulling away, then added with a smirk, "the last thing I need is for Qabian to see me dressed like this. I doubt I'd hear the end of it."

Sparing him a kiss, she walked upstairs towards their bedroom. Klathgrave, her voidwalker, was standing (or floating, rather) at attention. He watched as Ninorra undressed, and walked towards the dresser in search of something appropriate. The demon, while studiously keeping an eye on his mistress, kept his mind open to the voices that spoke to him.

So diligant in your duties, Klathgrave, said the familliar nathrezim. Make sure to keep an eye on her, won't you? I sense the oncoming presense of yet another interloper...

The voidwalker flexed his ethereal muscles. He did not like this Qabian almost as much as he detested Vicailde.

[Qabian]

Having decimated the population of Lost Rigger Cove, leaving a trail of burnt and smoking bodies, both Alliance and pirate, on the ships docked there, and after ransacking the captains' personal stores for his own use, Qabian Amberlight pulled one of the runestones from his pouch and stepped sideways through space, arriving instantly back in Undercity's Mage Quarter. He dusted the sand from his robes and made his way back to his apartment.

He cleaned himself up, and selected a blue and gold vest over a collared white shirt, along with dark pants. Compared to his usual robes, such an outfit did seem informal, but it had the double advantage of both looking good and obscuring his identity. He also chose to carry a sword at his side, rather than his staff. It felt ceremonious somehow, and was less immediately indicative of his profession than a staff might have been. Perhaps it was odd to take arms to dinner, but he wasn't about to leave himself that vulnerable on a walk through Silvermoon.

He made painstakingly certain that not a single grain of sand remained on any part of his blue mask, and put it on again. Looking like a strange combination of rogue and nobleman, carrying a sword and a bottle obviously containing alcohol, he walked to the translocator, rather than ride. His hawkstrider had been more annoying than usual lately.

Despite Redcap's efforts with his Magistrix mother, Qabian still had no desire to be a part of Silvermoon society in any way. While the Magisters may indeed be willing to take him back, a certain Duke would no doubt be glad to have the mage's head on a platter, or at least have him arrested again for violating the terms of his exile. So when he felt the need to grace the streets of Silvermoon with his presence, Qabian took measures to keep himself disguised. Thus far, Kalinda hadn't given him away the few times he'd come for training.

He would be late for his appointment, but only by a few minutes. It was only proper, after all. He wasn't exactly attending this event out of respect for the hosts. He smirked to himself at the thought, not that anyone passing by would notice through the mask. And arriving early would most definitely be a waste of time.

[Vicailde]

Vicailde walked into the kitchen and just stared blankly around for a moment. He was fairly well trained in cooking but nothing this delicate. He decided quickly not to touch anything and to just make sure nothing burned or boiled over.

He sighed heavily as he leaned on the counter behind him and took note of the unusally clean details. He smirked and noted to compliment Ninorra later before turning his attention back to the food.

[Ninorra]

When Ninorra walked back downstairs, there was a different air to her appearence. Her usually large and forcibly straightened hair was tight back into a tight braid that ran down the back of her head and was secured with two bejeweled hair ornaments. Several long strings of tiny red jewels that she had cut herself hung from the ornaments, reflecting the red lights in her eyes and creating tiny rainbows on her dark neck.

Below this, she wore a black and red dress. It was simple in it's design, with black straps and a thick black belt around her waist, emphasizing her rounded hips and ample bust. Catching sight of Vicailde, she smiled with painted red lips and placed a hand on the banister.

"..I think everything should be ready, by now," she said demurely, walking past him with a rustle of her long red skirt, and a click of her black heels. "If he comes, he'll be here momentarilly."

[Vicailde]

Vicailde looked up as she spoke and stared blankly at her as she spoke and walked past him, his face dumb founded for a moment before he clears his throat and straightens up slowly.

"Love... you look.. breath taking." He says quietly before clearing his throat once more and nodding. "...Do you need me to do anything else in order to prepare?"

[Qabian]

Qabian sauntered up the walkway to Bloodstone Manor. He had a sudden flash of memory of the last time he'd been in front of a nobleman's manor, and it brought a certain vexation to his demeanor, but he shrugged it off, quickly returning to his usual sense of smug self-satisfaction.

He pulled off his mask, rolled it up neatly, and stuffed it in the pouch at his belt. He took a moment to adjust his hair, somewhat inconvenienced by a lack of reflective surface, but his hair was always perfect anyway.

He paused just before knocking at the door, reflecting that he was getting himself into a ridiculous situation, but he reasoned that if it proved to be dreary, and pointless, and completely lacking entertainment, he had brought plenty of runes, and could simply wander off and neglect to return.

Finally, after waiting a few moments longer in conflict over whether to just go do something sensible instead, he knocked.

[Ninorra]

Ninorra heard the knock and smiled, tilting her head towards Vicailde as she walked towards the kitchen.

"Could you open the door? I believe Qabian is here."

http://img504.imageshack.us/img504/9947/dinner1qs3.jpg

As Ninorra retreated into the kitchen, she took great care in placing an apron over her dress so that it would not catch a stain. With great care, she removed the duck and the asparagus, placing each into beautiful dishes and loading them on to a silver tray. Already in the dining room was something that resembled a champagne bottle, but was actually sparkling apple cider. She took the time to remove her apron and take another glance at herself in the reflective mirror of a hanging pan before listening for anything going on outside.

[Vicailde]

Vicailde opened the door slowly and looked over Qabian slowly.

"Hrmm... I don't believe I caught your sur name last time we met.. in the Sunken Temple." Vicailde said a bit groughly as a greeting holding out his hand and grunting roughly.

[Qabian]

Qabian was somewhat shocked to be greeted by the man of the house rather than a servant. Not quite sure what that meant, he blinked a few times, staring at the man who had proved himself to be at least as strange as his wife, if not as talkative, at their previous encounter. Finally remembering himself, Qabian bowed by way of introduction, rather than taking the offered hand. "Qabian Amberlight. I certainly hope your wife mentioned my name, since this was her idea after all, although perhaps she has reason to forget my family."

A smirk on his face, Qabian placed the yellowed glass bottle he had brought with him into the other man's offered hand. A worn and faded label read 'Cuergo's Gold'. "I spent the afternoon in Tanaris," Qabian explained, grinning. "I know it breaks from tradition, but I'm hardly a traditionalist when it comes to these things. I'm nowhere near brave enough to drink it myself, but thought perhaps you could save it for some more adventurous occasion."

[Vicailde]

Vicailde looked to the bottle in his hands and he grunted a bit irritably. The constant scowl on his face furrowing a bit more.

"Hrmm.. I quit drinking after I remarried." Vicailde said a bit abruptly. "..and I don't think it's my wife's taste."

"And my wife only told me your first name.. which I recognized... but your sur name is a bit interesting..." Vicailde cleared his throat and his scowl twitched. "Please.. come in." He said a bit grumpily before opening the door a bit more to allow him to step inside.

[Qabian]

Qabian shrugged, not about to let a little rudeness ruin his hopes for an entertaining evening. "Whoever you may know of interest with my family name, I assure you I am not related to them. You can pour it out, if you like," he said, motioning to the bottle. "I'm sure the pirates won't be missing it any time soon."

He stepped inside. 'She must have married him because he's absolutely excruciating company,' the mage thought to himself, as he looked around. The house seemed like so many others belonging to nobility. Not that he'd ever spent much time in such places, being mostly an inhabitant of learning institutions himself.

"I notice you don't seem to keep a staff," Qabian commented, attempting to see if any servants were lurking in doorways within view, but the place seemed quite empty, except for the pleasant scents wafting in from what he assumed must be the kitchen. He wondered if the master of the house would take that as an insult to his abilities regarding upkeep. It was quite clean for a place without hired help, but Qabian was more interested in why a person would dispense with a status symbol like servants.

[Ninorra]

http://img527.imageshack.us/img527/8689/bottlera2.jpg

After Ninora had successfuly placed their meal on the table, she made sure that everything was straight for about the seventh time, and made her way into the main room.

Qabian was dressed much differently, than usual. He usually wore robes similar to hers, but tonight he seemed rather informal, as opposed to what he'd said before. She would have grinned, if it wasn't for the bottle that Vicailde was holding, combined with his grimace. Ninorra stepped in quickly, smiling at their guest.

"Well, you were right on time, now weren't you?" She asked casually, gently taking the bottle from Vicailde's hands. "This is a very lovely gesture, thank you Qabian."

[Vicailde]

Vicailde allows the bottle to slip from his grip and his eyes moved back to his guests.

"I don't believe in it nor a class system for that matter." He grunted. "I am a Sin'Dorei who likes to do things with his own hands. Birthright means nothing if you've never done a simple days physical work in your life. You wont get the proper mental base that's needed."

He cleared his throat and his now bottle free hand gave his neat facial hair a stroke, hs other arm hanging a bit akwardly limp at his side. "I wasn't making any presumptions about your sur name, as well. It would be contradictory for me to judge a man by his heritage or name."

His fingers traced along his right cheek for a moment before the hand dropped to his side.

"Everything ready, then?" Vicailde asked, his tone alot soften and quieter as he turns towards Ninorra for a moment.

[Qabian]

Qabian shrugged again, and placed his hands behind his back. Apprentices weren't exactly treated like kings. Qabian had done his share of manual labor in his lifetime. He still preferred to spend his time studying or killing people, and paying others to do the obnoxious necessary tasks for him when he had the money, which he hadn't really had before hiring himself out to the Horde at large. And the expense was unnecessary living alone without a manor of his own to upkeep, anyway.

He smiled at Ninorra's politeness and gratitude. He didn't believe she actually meant any of it, but the expression amused him, as did her husband's dour manner. Although, if the blood knight got any more blunt, Qabian could envision himself saying something regrettable at some point in the near future.

[Ninorra]

Ninorra nodded, smiling at both men. "Yes, it's all ready. If you'd follow me into the dining room.."

As she walked towards the dining room, Ninorra suddently felt a sense of smallness. It was rather large, for only three people. She never realized how long the table was.. but there were three seats at one end with silverware and china set painstakingly on the lace tablecloth, a duck, a tureen of asparagus, several bowls of exotic fruit, and a bottle of apple cider being chilled.

"Please have a seat," she said with an extended hand, directing Qabian to the seat opposite of her own, with Vicailde at the head. "I hope you like water fowl."

[Vicailde]

Vicailde nodded and followed Ninorra around, pulling the chair out for her and pushing it lightly in as she sat down before taking his own seat at the head of the table. He sat down and looked a bit stiff as he looked over the food.

"Hrmm.. it looks delicious Ninorra." Vicailde spoke before reaching out and picking up the knife and fork to cut the bird. His grip adjusted akwardly around the large fork in his left hand as he stared at if for a moment before runing the knife up and down the metal to test his own grip before he began to carve the bird.

[Qabian]

Qabian followed in silence and took his place as directed. He also noted the length of the table, and wondered when the entire length of it had last been put to use. Judging by Vicailde's attitude to company, Qabian assumed it would probably be more practical as firewood.

There were a hundred things in his mind that he wanted to say, but most of them would probably just end with Vicailde becoming infuriated and Ninorra crying because her guest had insulted her husband. If she had been alone, Qabian wouldn't have hesitated. She may have some power of her own, but she was far too limited by the expectations of others to use it against him. But he had not yet fully judged the paladin, and Qabian was still waiting to see how far he could push the other man.

He opened his mouth to make a snide remark about only really needing to like this water fowl, but stopped and changed his mind as he watched Vicailde's odd hesitation in handling the fork.

[Ninorra]

Ninorra watched Vicailde as he struggled to cut. She realized at once that he might have been having trouble, due to the inherent strength of his new arm. She was about to offer to do it herself, but stopped herself. Vicailde was, if anything, a very proud man. He wouldn't take to having his wife step between him and something so simple as cutting meat.

Instead, she decided to provide a distraction.

"Thank you, darling.. I spent several hours looking for just the right herbs to use in it, when I realized that it might be prudent to pay a visit to a more exotic location. I've heard of there being many rare and beautiful herbs in the Eastern Kingdoms, and paid a visit to several locations.

"That's also where I found the cider," she said, indicating the chilling bottle. "Allow me to pour it for you both."

[Vicailde]

"Please." Vicailde nodded to his wife shortly as he cut.

The cuts started out a bit irregular but, quickly became even slices. He slowly placed the untinsels down on the table and placed his hands in his lap for a moment. The handle of the large fork cracked and part of the metal bent slightly.

Vicailde cleared his throat, his eyes trailing away from the handle to the cooling bottle in the middle of the table.

"...So who would like some duck first?" He began after a moment.

[Qabian]

Qabian sat quite still. This was turning out to be extremely awkward, spending so much effort biting his tongue in order to wait for the most effective moment to maximize his entertainment. "Since you asked, why not your wife?" he offered. "I'm sure she would refuse, but she is the one who put the effort into the meal, after all. Surely she should be rewarded for her hard work."

Inwardly, he was rolling his eyes, but kept his outer expression as still as he could manage. 'How long could this go on?' he wondered. "Did you happen to have any encounters with anything more interesting than herbs on your search, Lady Bloodstone?"

[Ninorra]

Ninorra grinned.

"Oh yes. A few humans thought that it was bad sport for a Sin'dorei to be trapsing in their lands, so I had a great deal of pleasure incinerating them."

Glancing at Vicailde, she nodded.

"..and I like dark meat, love."

[Vicailde]

Vicailde remains silent and takes up Ninorra's plate and places one of the peices on her plate before placing it back down infront of her giving her a small smile before turning to Qabian and reaching. He places a slightly large peice onto his plate and places it back down infront of him before finally placing a peice on his own plate.

[Qabian]

Qabian clasped and unclasped his hands in his lap, considering whether to ask how loudly her victims had screamed, but second guessed himself for the tenth time already, and decided he should at least get some food out of this event before letting it explode the way he expected it to.

He watched Vicailde serve the food. He hoped the couple weren't too traditionalist and expected him as a guest to eat first. He would wait for his hosts to finish serving and start eating before joining them, and not out of politeness, but out of suspicion. He didn't know these people, other than what the rumor mill ground out. But if they shared the same food, at least they had gone to some considerable effort to poison him. Qabian tried mentally linking the Bloodstone name with the Sunbounds, but he just wasn't versed enough in the social goings-on in Silvermoon. He was fairly confident Ninorra wouldn't be involved in the Duke's dirty work, but he couldn't be certain about Vicailde.

In the interests of forcing at least some conversation, Qabian asked Vicailde, "How is Vilmah then? You are in Sanctuary together, I presume? I've heard strange rumors since the evening in the Temple."

[Vicailde]

(( Vicailde isn't old by the way. Check out the Character Bios I just updated it recently. Lovely grew him a new body which came with the metal arm that you saw in the Sunken Temple. ))

Vicailde grunted and began to cut his meat with his fok, avoiding using both hands for as long as possible.

"Alot of people ask that. I honestly do not know Vilmah that well. Our meetings have been short and brief." He lifted the meat to his lips and began to chew slowly.

"Hmm.." He smiles lightly at Ninorra and continues to chew before swallowing. "Very good, Nina. You've out done yourself."

[Ninorra]

Ninorra bowed her head proudly, allowing herself to open the bottle of cider and poured it into each of their glasses. "Thank you, love.. and, you know I heard that she was injured, during an attack on Orgrimmar."

The cider came out a pale amber color, and fizzed a little inside of the decorated glasses. Ninorra smiled as she poured.

"I do hope that this is well worth all of the mana I depleated on those humans.. they were unneccisarilly rude. You wouldn't believe the tactics they attempted; their little Daleran mages don't have a clue as to what they're doing."

[Qabian]

Qabian gingerly took a bite of the duck. It was quite good. It was no poached sagefish, but it was certainly palatable enough.

He swallowed and smiled at Ninorra. "My compliments. It's very good."

"I worked in Dalaran for many years. Humans were almost as unreliable then as they are now, even though we didn't realize the degree of the threat at the time. Setting them on fire wasn't quite as frequent among us at that point, either. Thankfully, we've remedied that," he said, grinning as he continued to cut his meat.

Continuing on his train of thought, he looked at Vicailde again. "So if you don't know Vilmah, what brought you to Sanctuary? Or am I wrong about your affiliation?"

[Vicailde]

Vicailde cleared his throat after swallowing another peice.

"I orginally joined because, after doing some research I found that they had some experts in the field of the Elements and Engineering. Through their combined efforts I was able to create a more stable version of a 'mana-injector' that I had created of my own design to keep my health stable for a longer period of time." He cleared his throat and took a sip of the cider. "hrmm.. the only downside was that the raw mana in my bloodstream was painful.. as if a high powered warlock were constantly burning me from the inside and it only worsened the faster my blood pumped. Ninorra insisted that Lovely grow me a new body.. hrmm.. another affiliate of Sanctuary."

Vicailde ate another peice of meat slowly before swallowing.

"Any misperceptions of myself being a peaceful man is somewhat incorrect. I merely follow the guild rules because I am a member."

[Ninorra]

Ninorra shrugged at Vicailde's statement.

"There is nothing wrong with being a man of peace, so long as one doesn't allow others to rule over one's intentions.. and although Sanctuary has suffered frequent attacks, our afilliation with them has proven to be quite beneficial. We have many friends there."

She began to eat, but found the duck to be somewhat heavy on her stomach. Ninorra put down her fork and drank instead.

[Vicailde]

"Yes.. well.. I was just explaining that I did not join for the means of Peace... their fews are a bit altered in that state and it seems that they're going to war or something." He grunts and scratches. "Never the less the members are the main reason I joined."

He takes another bite of the duck and looks towards Ninorra's plate.

"Something wrong? You've hardly touched your food."

[Ninorra]

"I'm.. not feeling very well, actually," Ninorra replied slowly. She gave them both a reassuring smile. "I think I used more mana than I expected. I'm probably a bit weakened."

She took another sip from her glass, trying to avert Vicailde's eyes.

[Vicailde]

Vicailde stares at Ninorra for a moment before clearing his throat and taking another bite of food.

"So.. What guild are you in Qabian?" Vicailde starts up after a moment.

[Qabian]

((Sorry, got kidnapped to a baseball game, hehe.))

Qabian watched the interchange with curiosity. He doubted the girl's discomfort was actually from overuse of mana, but her reasons to be deceptive were as yet unclear. And at least Vicailde's explanation of why he had chosen the guild he did gave a relatively valid excuse for his youthful appearance, despite the fact that Qabian's mother had noted the paladin's age and the several centuries Ninorra claimed he had lived. Qabian wasn't sure he'd ever put himself willingly into the hands of such chemistry. He'd rather take death's hand than cheat it so drastically, but there were always circumstances. Maybe irrational love was enough to encourage one to cheat death.

Qabian was taking a drink of the cider when Vicailde asked the question, but it wasn't a surprise. He watched the other man over his glass, drinking several mouthfuls before putting it down. It had only been a matter of time. Perhaps this answer would open up some more interesting avenues to explore.

"I'm glad to hear you're not afraid. I often think Sanctuary's policies are based on fear, the fear that should they take the stand that is required, there might be war. Perhaps they should look around and realize that the war has never really ended, and is now fought on more fronts than ever before. It hardly makes sense to me that such terrified children can even pretend to be an organization of any use to the Horde whatsoever." The mage didn't even attempt to hide the condescension in his voice.

"Whoever Sanctuary declares war with today hardly matters. We are all at war. Whoever pretends otherwise is a fool. To that end, I have allied myself with the Grim. Aside from a few of the smaller Forsaken organizations, they seem to be the only group willing to do what is necessary. To end a war, one side needs to win. I intend to be part of the arm that ensures the Alliance and all other enemies of the Horde are put in their rightful place, the place they can only reach through total annihilation."

[Ninorra]

"Quite the opportunist, aren't you?" Ninorra said with a sly smirk towards Qabian. "You know, I haven't found it in my best interest to join a guild, as of yet.. nothing has interested me. I am not sure if I will or not in the future. They all seem so very self involved and pretentious. They all claim that what they do is for some sort of 'greater good', but I can't see any of them fulfilling anything other than mindless bloodshed.. not that this is a bad thing, but.."

She took another sip of her cider.

"Why not simply admit it? If killing is what you enjoy, just say so. If there's one thing I can't stand, it's dishonesty. Dishonesty has got to be the most irritating form of.."

There was a moment's pause as Ninorra's eyelids fluttered. She quickly pushed back her chair.

"Excuse me, please."

The warlock didn't give them much time to respond before hurredly walking out of the dining room, her heels clicking against the hardwood floors.

[Qabian]

Qabian blinked in surprise, and pushed back his chair to stand up, almost a reaction of concern for whatever was wrong with Ninorra, but quickly stopped himself. He leaned forward again, elbows on the table, steepling his fingers, and grinning his usual smug grin. He had never once said that killing was not what he enjoyed. In fact, if he could recall correctly, he had distinctly noted that it was the end result of his powers that he enjoyed. While she enjoyed the pain, he enjoyed the death. He had been thoroughly honest, and was quite certain of it.

"Perhaps you'd best see to your wife, Lord Bloodstone. Whatever else is wrong with her, her memory also seems to be failing."

[Vicailde]

Vicailde watched Ninorra leave in concern before turning to look at Qabian's new position.

"Ninorra is a proudful Sin'Dorei.. to say the least but, if something were truely wrong she would have said something." Vicailde padded his mouth with his napkin before placing it back into his lap.

"...Tell me Qabian. Why are you here?" Vicailde's eyes were staring at him with a bit of a side ways glance.

[Qabian]

Qabian laughed. "Your wife invited me," he stated simply, then paused for effect.

"But why did I accept the invitation? That's a much better question.

"I don't suppose your wife had much time to explain the details of our earlier conversation. In short, she has interesting tastes which I think could lead to greatness if she let them, but she is chained down by you, and yet hardly knows anything about you and why you make your choices. And she certainly does not share all of her own secrets with you. I was curious enough to see if my interference could change your situation with her. That is all.

"Although, I suppose if your wife is just going to abandon the conversation, I'm unlikely to be able to engage in much debate about anything at all. I certainly don't see you conceding to any of my opinions the way she might.

"And the strange combination of details where she noted that you essentially married her for her womb, and you have recently been granted a newly functional if somewhat artificial body, and she has now rather abruptly excused herself from company that she herself invited, makes me wonder that you are not considerably more interested in her current state of health, even if she is as proud as you say. I'm no midwife, but I'd certainly be intrigued by any sign of nausea in a woman I was attempting to get pregnant.

"Besides, how much pride can a former slave have? If she was as proud as you say, I doubt she would have married you."

Qabian leaned his head back against the tall chair in which he sat and stared down the way Ninorra had departed, looking rather pleased with himself for his speech.

[Vicailde]

Vicailde took a sip of his drink and smirked at Qabian.

"Ninorra must have told you differently. I did not marry her to produce 'my' heir but her own with another man." He finished the glass and placed it on the table. "I was nearing death and had been dodging his hand for some time and I knew my time was at an end. The woman whom I had loved before died at a very early age and my second wife was the cause of it. She died to one of the Scourge attacks." Vicailde said slowly and cleared his throat.

"Ninorra reminded me of my first wife when I saw her in the Rest Inn Peace and she was stricken by a young blood knight who could not marry her because of her class." Vicailde shrugged before wetting his lips.

"I simply decided to just give her my title, more or less on a whim... perhaps I'm mad." Vicailde paused. "It was her idea to actually love me and so I agreed to try to love her... and now I do. I am also quite aware of her neaua and she hasn't been feeling well for a bit. My worrying would make her feel even worse, if anything."

[Qabian]

Qabian raised an eyebrow. "Your worrying would what? Fine. I admit I will never understand the complete lack of logic that accompanies love." He said the last word with a definite tone of distaste.

"I recall quite clearly her saying you needed an heir. Perhaps you misled her, or perhaps the way things have changed since your marriage has distorted both your memories. Or perhaps the pair of you are telling me different stories simply because it amuses you. That hardly matters to me.

"I am here only because your wife seems to have potential for greatness and is stifling it through you. Whether it's her fault or yours is completely immaterial.

"To be honest, having encountered you in conjunction with Vilmah, I assumed your wife was also connected with Sanctuary. I found the interests she expressed to me somewhat contradictory to what I'd heard of that organization. I thought to perhaps convince the both of you to abandon the orc child, but more importantly to make Ninorra question her connection to you. I don't care which guild Ninorra prefers. In fact, she's probably correct that she's better off without any guild allegiance whatsoever. On her own she could do great things, if she could only realize she is capable of standing on her own. I certainly don't believe she needs you, and the idea that you would just abandon someone you say you love to illness is both baffling and seems to confirm my belief.

Qabian placed his hands behind his head, still seeming to expect Ninorra's return at any moment, or at least her husband to show some interest in her. "We have all lost family to the Scourge. None of that explains Ninorra's insistence on remaining a slave to an insensitive man like yourself."

[Vicailde]

"hmm... so you think she would do better to attach herself to you?" Vicailde murmured before refilling his glass. "Again, your facts are skewed. She picked me and through that it was completely her choice and free will. That sounds to be the exact opposite of a slave."

Vicailde took a sip of his drink.

"This is also not the first time she's excused herself like this. I am not a new man to marriages and I know when to worry and when not to." Vicailde continued. "It also seems to be that you are trying to stir me. I'm sure conflict gets you off from what you've said about yourself."

[Ninorra]

After promptly vomiting the contents of her stomach, Ninorra made sure to wash her mouth and wipe her face. She wore little makeup, save the red lipstick that she used to match her mouth to her eyes and dress. It was a bold statement, to accessorize with that which made her different, but Ninorra enjoyed the color. After making sure that her hair was similarly well cared for, she walked back down the stairs.

Both men were talking. If she knew Qabian, he'd be trying to stir Vicailde. In his old body, when he was far less apt to take abuse from anyone, he might have lost his temper and broken a bottle on the side of a table to use as a weapon. Luckilly, she knew that he was different now. Love had softened him to the world's irritations, and she was sure that even Qabian's berating wouldn't bring him back to that mindset.

Standing clear of the entrance, she listened for a break in conversation to return to her seat.

[Qabian]

Qabian laughed, practically doubling over in his chair with laughter. It took him a while to regain a more calm state of bemusement, and sort through the other man's words enough to form new thoughts to share, but the mage managed to do so eventually, tugging at the front of his vest and coughing.

"As your wife put it so tactfully, what I enjoy is mindless killing. That's what I do best, and it's what gets me off, as you put it. Conflict is merely an entertaining sidebar to the mindless killing, and even then, conflict is only entertaining when there is some sort of purpose to it, preferably a purpose that results in more killing. My intent to cause conflict here has the greater purpose of hopefully causing more killing to occur in the future.

"Your wife seems to enjoy killing greatly. That gave us something in common. I assume that's why she invited me to dinner, because we had a shared interest. However, she puts thoroughly too much mind into her killing. In order to simplify her life and truly enjoy killing the way I do, she needs to divest herself of a considerable amount of baggage. And you, whether it is your intention or not, are just another obstacle to her becoming a mindless killer.

"Perhaps she did choose you out of her own free will. My point is that it was a terrible choice, and that if she knew what was in her best interests, she'd stop shackling herself to others and indulge herself as a truly proud Sin'dorei, no matter what her history or yours.

"Similarly, if she so much as tried to attach herself to me, I'd snap her scrawny neck. She may have invited me to dinner, but we are not friends. She may have potential for greatness, but as she is this moment, she is an asinine, insolent, impractical, harebrained, ignorant child, determined to spend her days wallowing in needless inferiority. She is certainly not the type of person I would want to be attached to."

The mage continued to grin, eyeing the long unused line of the table before him, musing internally on its pointlessness.

[Ninorra]

Ninorra walked into the dining room, smiling casually at Qabian.

"Tactful as always," she said with a light chuckle. "You know, it's always nice to have you around, if only for sheer entertainment value. You rant more than a priest of the Scarlet Crusade, Qabian."

Returning to her seat, she nodded at Vicailde, glancing sideways at Qabian.

"See, love? You've nothing to fear from him. I'm not attracted to gingers, anyway."

[Vicailde]

Vicailde stood up slowly.

"Insulting me, I can take but never insult my wife in my presence." He said a bit roughly his fists clenching. "I am going to have to ask you to leave my house, now."

"I've seen your type before, Qabian. You think you can rule the world. You act as if you were better than everyone else and yet.. you have nothing. You hide in the Undercity even with all your 'power', yes I know who you are and if conflict is what you truly desire why are you in a guild that's conquest is to stop a war. If they are succesful there will be no one else to kill but themselves." Vicailde lifted a hand towards the door, the leather whined a bit as his left finger extended in a point. "Now leave."

His hand faltered as Ninorra entered the room and he released a breath before lowering the hand and taking his seat.

[Ninorra]

"Oh dear.." Ninorra said, sighing lightly. "Perhaps I should have come back sooner. I suppose my husband doesn't take to your ranting as well as I do, Qabian.. but shame on you for being so blunt so early. You should know that it takes time for some people to get used to such regular verbal assaults."

She shook her head, looking somewhat dissapointed.

"Oh well.. at least you were able to see my home."

[Qabian]

Qabian had not made any motions to leave. As Ninorra entered, he nodded lightly to her.

Noting Vicailde had left his attempts at physical threat behind, Qabian continued to sit calmly in his chair and explain, "If the Grim succeed in their mission, then you are quite correct. I will be at a loss for who to kill next. At such a juncture, I may have to reconsider my life's goals. However, the Alliance is not so pathetic. You must give them more credit than that, honestly. I believe I will be able to devote my entire lifetime to assisting the Grim's mission in my particularly irreverent fashion before they will have completed it, especially to the degree which they intend.

"I do not hide in the Undercity. I choose to reside there. Sylvanas is doing far more than Lor'themar right now. I prefer the company of her people. They are considerably less inane and more sensible. If I hide, it is only from one man, a man who I'm sure believes he needs revenge. I would prefer to keep my person intact for as long as possible. It's quite difficult to engage in killing when you are imprisoned or dead yourself.

"And your wife's connection of me with Crusader priests also has an element of truth in it. What I share with them is fanaticism and devotion, but my targets are not only the imagined Scourge, but all who stand against us. If I come to rule the world, it will only be because I earned it. I am not better than everyone else yet, but I will be, if I have my way."

Still sitting, the mage smiled at Ninorra and said gently, "Indeed. I have seen your home. It is a pity your husband does not take well to my insistence that you should throw off your shackles and enjoy freedom for as much of your life as you have left. However, he did not invite me. You did. Shall I take my leave?"

[Ninorra]

"As much as I personally enjoy your company, I am, as you say, an impractical child who is mad with love, and the comfort of my husband," she said with a smile towards Vicailde. "..is something that I value. I am sorry for having troubled you with coming so far, only to have our evening cut short. Perhaps when my skills have grown considerably, we might party together in battle, instead."

She paused, considering.

"By that time, my madness in the face of love may not matter to you so. A warlock, be she miserable or infatuated, is a powerful ally to be had. Especially one who shares your interests so."

[Qabian]

"The comfort of your husband is a crutch. While he lives, your skills will never be what they could. But if you insist." Qabian pushed his chair back and stood up.

[Vicailde]

Vicailde sat rigidly in his chair picking up his glass and taking a long sip from it before placing it back down.

[Ninorra]

Ninorra stood and walked towards the door, intent on seeing Qabian out. Before she made it to the living room, she managed to pass by a bowl of individually wrapped candies. They were wrapped in green metallic paper.

"For the trip home," she said politely, holding it in the air towards him, between fingernails that were carefully laquered in red and black. "It was a pleasure having you, even if it was only for a brief time."

[Qabian]

Qabian bowed rather ridiculously with flourish to the stoic Vicailde, and took Ninorra's lead, following her from the dining room.

He took the bowl from her, balancing it on his palm. "You were welcome to my company. A pity I didn't accomplish my intent, but who knows? Words can reverberate and the future holds much we do not expect. You are an excellent cook, though your husband might have appreciated a touch more arsenic in my share."

He did not wait for her to respond. With his free hand, he reached into the pouch at his belt and pulled out a small stone with a rune etched on it. He flicked it into the air with his thumb, caught it again, snatching it out of the air just before Ninorra's face, and with a somewhat uncanny teeth-baring grin, he promptly vanished.

~~

Rather than head back to his apartment, Qabian decided he'd rather spend the rest of the evening tinkering with some of the equipment at the Apothecarium, and headed in that direction, humming a little tune as he walked, taking the candies with him.