A/N:

Welcome to some self-indulgent, waiting-for-Argus inspired nonsense. Please proceed at your own risk.

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It was her favorite part of the day, and for the first time in a week she had made it up to the highest point of the Cathedral to greet it properly.

Tanyth idly munched on her apple- slightly bruised and a little overripe, but still tasty- as the lightening sky tinted pink, then violet, then blue and finally golden. As she watched, the sun itself crept over the edge of the horizon its vivid golden gaze spilling brilliant light onto the waters of Great Sea, staining them red-orange; like fire in the hearth.

Her apple gone- well, down to its core, which she then tossed over in the corner for the pigeons- she efficiently licked the remains of her breakfast off her fingers before folding her legs up towards her chest and hiding her hands behind her knees. Being this high meant that the winds really had no other obstacles and thus their morning chill was stark.

There still wasn't anywhere quite like the steeple of the Cathedral of Light to watch a sunrise, though.

Stormwind boasted stone buildings, and some were really more like stone skyscrapers. The brightly colored roof tiles twinkled merrily in the morning light while the warm woods of storefronts built out from Stormwind's solidly blue-grey stone backbone softened the glare just enough to make the view decidedly pleasant. The canals- which spanned the city- sparkled, their green waters adding a soothing white noise that softened the calls from shopkeepers and citizens already out on the streets. The trees and grasses that crept along the walkways in neatly appointed parks or trenches added a dash of nature's unrestrained beauty to Stormwind's severe architecture.

The bell behind her tolled, the vibrations nearly pitching her off the balustrade she wasn't supposed to be sitting on, and she sighed. Carefully hopping over the rail and smoothing down her simple linen dress she made her way towards the stairs, knowing that if she wasn't down in the Cathedral proper for morning prayers Sister Shaina would get an earful from Brother Joshua.

She grumbled some not-so-charitable things about the rather pushy Brother as she bounded down the winding steps, tracing lines in the walls on either side of her with her fingers.

'I need to remind Sister Shaina that we need to make those heavy wool bandages for the Abbey. Otherwise she'll probably forget again.' She mused as she kept her eyes trained on the grey stone steps- pitched downward and inward to help repel attackers, according to Paladin Gazin- crossing a short landing before descending another set of steps. 'They're running really low out there and we still have the silk bandages for the Army to get done this week.'

She was lucky, she knew, to have a family member to claim her. Luckier still to be in Stormwind; in the Cathedral, the first place to be rebuilt. She still felt a little less than content spending her days singing songs of the Light as she stitched bandages together, sealing rolls of them shut with arcane spells to keep them potent and fresh.

So. Many. Bandages.

Tanyth had nightmares about sewing linen bandages with silken thread by accident and having to redo them all. It never failed to make her twitchy about triple-checking her supplies the entire next day, much to Sister Shaina ill-concealed delight.

Bounding down the last of the steps, she double checked her dress and quickly plaited her hair, staying back in the shadows of the open doorway to- hopefully- save herself a reprimand.

No such luck.

"Tanyth! Where have you been?" Sister Shaina- technically Tanyth's cousin- hissed as the older woman hurried over to her, batting Tanyth's hands away and quickly braiding the girl's hair, twisting it up and then tucking it under into the regulation bun for Cathedral support staff. Once done the woman turned Tanyth around and began to scrub at nonexistent dirt on Tanyth's face.

Tanyth knew this because she had washed up properly before she had gone sky-gazing, thank you very much.

"-ing today and we're supposed to be working when they come." Shaina was saying, grabbing onto Tanyth's hand and hauling the girl out the doorframe, the woman's white nurse's dress making soft swishing sounds as they walked. Er, half-jogged.

Shaina kept babbling but Tanyth wasn't able to make out any of it as they wound around the outer edge of the main hall of the Cathedral and towards their workroom on the right side.

Soon enough Shaina dumped Tanyth into her usual seat, a hard backed chair with Stormwind lions engraved into it that pulled up to a little three-sided work station, in the far corner of the room. Tanyth's basket of supplies was the only thing in the world she truly owned- well, the basket, not the supplies- pretty little white woven wicker basket with colorful wooden flowers tapped onto its top edge.

The room was decorated in much the same manner as most rooms in the Cathedral. Stormwind blue- a royal blue, if you would- was the most common theme, with the brilliant gilded lion outline of the House of Wrynn adding a dash of pizazz. The rugs were likewise, royal blue edged in gold with warm wood workstations and bookshelves offset by the solid stone walls. Of course in this particular room the bookshelves on the outside wall held bolts of cloth. There was also a small alchemy station-slash-kitchen area where Shaina made salves, creams, and tonics.

On the left side of Tanyth's walnut work station Shaina deposited a full bolt of wool and two spools of coarse thread, giving Tanyth a flustered look. "Keep busy and-"

"-don't forget to use the right prayers." Tanyth finished glumly, pouting. That had been once! One time! Right after she had first arrived here!

Honestly! Use the wrong prayers for a single set of bandages and everyone loses their minds!

It was actually pretty comforting to her. The use of the Light to imbue bandages and such with extra concentrated healing powers. While she was well aware that the 'Light' was merely a realm of power- part of the fabric of reality in this universe- the familiar churches, hymns, and general worship structure had helped her reorganize her priorities. Well, she had found it rather easy to decide that the 'Light' was still a tangible force, and thus it was entirely possible that there was a higher power- far removed from what could be accessed by someone like her- and that had rather neatly solved her crisis of faith.

Because the Light didn't really respond to faith, so much as it did conviction. It was a neutral force, the opposite of the Void, and it was up to the individual person to use the power of the Light in a way they believed to be right and just. The Light was inherently calming and a restorative power- be it emotional, physical, or spiritual- but there was such a thing as being 'too close to the sun' and in all things there must be balance.

Shaina smiled- achingly fond and just a bit terrified- and reached out to cup Tanyth's cheek, her calloused fingers warm and familiar against the younger girl's skin. "I know. I know." The woman sighed, leaning down to press a kiss against Tanyth's blondish-brownish hair before stepping back a little. "But if the King or one of the Nobles thinks that you're not earning your keep, they might send you away. There are rumors that the Stonemasons haven't been paid yet, even though the city is nearly finished and the Nobles are looking for any reason to slash funding. Of course, you'd go to Northshire and the Abbey isn't that far away from Stormwind but-"

Tanyth didn't have anything against the Northshire Abbey folks, but she really didn't want to be separated from the only family she had left. It was Tanyth's innate capability for channeling the Light that kept her from being sent to an orphanage or one of the Royally-sponsored training facilities.

Or the streets, even.

But still, Shaina was the only family Tanyth had. Tanyth's mother had died in the refugee camp just before they were to be relocated to Stormwind, and the rest of her family had met their fates in the Army or on the plains during one the Horde's march to Stormwind. So Shaina and Tanyth were all each other had left.

(In this life, anyways. While usually there might be some serious angsting and grief, with all that she had been through since she had blinked awake and realized where she was…..well, she just didn't have the emotional energy to spare for it.

But, yeah, Azeroth. And given that Prince Arthas of the Kingdom of Lordaeron, Stormwind's staunchest ally, was due to come strolling into the Cathedral to receive a blessing from Archbishop Alonsus Faol any minute now, she hadn't even seen the worst of it yet.)

Tanyth smiled brightly at her caretaker and cousin before settling down to cut her work down to size. While all the furniture in the Cathedral was high quality oak or walnut her table had fired stone mats with measurements carved into it laid out across the surface of the polished wood that made her job somewhat easier. Besides the cutting was far more fun than the sewing. Sewing meant making a thousand little stitches that had to be precise and efficient while also quietly reciting ritual prayers, singing hymns, and the like in order to infuse the bandages with the healing powers of the Light.

It was among the first lessons a Priestess was taught and Tanyth was actually really good at it. Abnormally good and she wasn't even a Priestess, or even a true Acolyte, honestly. It was her unusual talent for channeling the Light that allowed her to stay with her cousin.

Because Tanyth was useful. And as long as she continued to be she wouldn't suffer the fate of most fatherless orphans in Stormwind- the Stormwind Military Academy or the Arcane University of Stormwind. Essentially a pipeline for the desperate to learn the skills they would need to sign up for the Army or in direct service to the Crown, at the price of signing up for a six year stint to be admitted. Dropping out meant paying the Treasury back for their 'investment'.

It was cruel, callous, and more than a little underhanded, but at least if they survived they would be able to make a living.

Or so the recruiting pitch went.

So Tanyth was a bandage maker at the Cathedral. A defacto Acolyte until she reached the age of sixteen and was given the choice to commit to the Holy Order of Northshire Clerics. The Order was going through a bit of an identity crisis at the moment. The long held belief of the Order was that the Holy Light was, in fact, the 'spirit of humanity' and the Order's mission was to 'heal men's souls so that everlasting peace might one day become possible'. That ideology- which was centuries old- was hitting a brick wall against the Order's need to use the Light to defend themselves against the invaders that had come through the Dark Portal.

And, as much as she was a person of faith, Tanyth wasn't really excited about organized religion. The organized part or the religion part. In her experience the only things more oxymoronic than 'organized religion' were things like 'free working holiday', 'gently used underwear', and 'fresh discount seafood'.

Her first section of cloth sectioned off properly, she hummed the tune of 'Ode to the Light' while she dug into her basket for her favored needles. Wool was a rough fabric and to make the most of it she needed her mid-sized needles; easier to keep track of thataway. Her fine needles she saved for silk, as it had a tendency to need twice the number of stitches to keep it from fraying.

Fraying silk was a major no-no.

Her attentions focused solely on her task she was a bit startled by the celebration bells- when the bells from all the towers of the Cathedral rang out, instead of just the massive 'main' one- and she paused just long enough to watch the celebration of Prince Arthas' induction into the Silver Hand.

The Order of the Knights of the Silver Hand being the Order that Archbishop Faol- one of the most respected Clerics of the modern age, and the Cathedral's leader- had founded alongside his apprentice, Uther the Lightbringer. The Silver Hand was an order of Paladins: men who were warriors more than Clercis; defenders who use the power of the Holy Light to drive back invaders.

The Prince of Lordaeron- the preeminent human kingdom; Lordaeron had taken in Stormwind's refugees when the lower Eastern Kingdoms had fallen to the Horde- himself triumphantly marched down the center aisle, King Wrynn beside him like a proud brother, while the onlookers cheered with excited vigor. The Prince's newly bestowed blade shone with an unearthly light at his hip, and even Tanyth could sense the Light's power emanating from the weapon, as far away and as many people removed from the Prince as she was.

'I am reminded of that one scene with Bard the Bowman, 'except an army of elves, it would seem' right now.' She huffed a little as she straightened out her current piece and resumed stitching, humming tunelessly under her breath. 'There are enough people that it's standing room only and I didn't even notice the service being conducted!'

Tanyth finished her latest roll of bandages, sealed them, and then placed them in the 'finished' basket before she pushed herself to her feet and began to stretch. She scooted her chair back a little to make more room and slipped out of her slippers for better traction. She grimaced a little as her legs grouchily reminded her that they were numb- she had a really bad habit of sitting on her knees in her work chair for a bit more height- but she pushed through the unpleasant sensation; well aware that Brother Joshua would make her and the other Acolytes run laps around the courtyard if they weren't ready for sparring practice. She was a bit hungry, but that was her own fault as she had skipped breakfast to watch the sunrise.

Ah, well.

-XXX-

"Keep your guard up, girl!" Brother Joshua barked, circling Tanyth and her sparring partner- Priestess Laurena's little brother, Caleb- like an impatient magpie. "I see another one of the boy's attacks get through before Brother Sarno calls time and you'll both be doing laps, you hear me!"

Tanyth half-heartedly blew her sweaty flyaway hairs out her eyes and grimaced at Caleb, who looked rather apologetic. The sun's light was nearly overbearing, as it was just past noon- which the Cathedral's main bell tolled for- and thus the trees in the western courtyard of the Cathedral were yet to be of any great use. With all the stained glass on the Cathedral itself, this courtyard got quite warm in the middle of summer. At least they were practicing on the soft grass instead of the inside sparring ring. The passing in that room was a joke- it was literally a sheet or something- and at least outside there was a chance for a breeze.

No manner of sweet peacebloom scent made up for the scratchy feel of falling onto a patch of silverleaf. That stuff felt like velvet and tended to act like poison oak if not washed off quick enough. Technically it was supposed to only grow in the bricked-off gardens that grew around the trees and along the edges of the courtyard, but it had a tendency to drift. Thankfully this courtyard didn't have any mageroyal! The thorns on the hardy, rose-like plants were actually slightly poisonous, not to mention stabby.

Brother Joshua was a slave driver. He did not care in the least that she was in a linen dress, she learned to take a fall just like the others and when it came to sparring, Brother Joshua merely glared murder at anyone who was stupid enough to suggest that the female Acolytes didn't need physical training.

His favorite line- "Even healers need to learn how to defend themselves, nitwit!"- was surpassed only by his terse- "What's good is an untested shield, moron?!".

Thus, midmorning sparring with Brother Joshua and the only other child in her age range, Caleb Paxton, who happened to just have turned eleven.

But she digressed.

Caleb was rather tall for his age which put him at least a head and half taller than Tanyth, who was barely pushing the age of nine and rather….stunted. That was bound to happen when one lived in the Stormwind refugee camps, before they were relocated to Elwynn, then Stormwind itself, so the camps could be repurposed to house the captive Orcs.

The House of Wishock was not the most empathetic of overseers to begin with- they had overseen the camp Tanyth had been born in- and when their luxuries were threatened they felt zero shame in robbing their subjects to maintain their- perceived- deserved quality of life. That last winter nearly a quarter of those at Camp Lordamere died from exposure; or at least a mix of exposure, disease, and hunger. Being crammed between the shores of a lake and the mountains that encircled the Kingdom of Alterac would do that, when the people had little to nothing to eat and no protection to speak of. The men had largely been off fighting for the Alliance- whether they wanted to or not- and thus at the end of the war, when the rebuilding was first happening and they were deposited in the camps to wait out the initial leg of infrastructure and planning stages, there was plenty of celebrating.

Once Stromgarde and Gilneas left the Alliance of Lordaeron food shortages became even more commonplace than before, which was sort of a big deal as a large amount of people living in cramped quarters with little to nothing to do- because there was a surplus of people and while not willing to let them all die, the people of the Alliance of Lordaeron really had no use for them- meant babies. Babies meant pregnant and nursing women in addition to squalling little bundles of joy.

So Tanyth's growth was a bit stunted, despite her late mother's best efforts.

Keeping her arms up- and oh man, did they ache!- Tanyth did her best to focus on Caleb's tells. While a much better fighter than her, the bronze-haired boy tended to twitch a little a second before he rushed her.

'There it is!' Tanyth blocked his left arm, bringing her left fist down just below his elbow and pushing the arm away. At the same time she shifted her stance back- putting most of her weight on her right leg for better leverage- and used her right arm to grab at his extended arm, throwing him off center long just enough for her to swat his badly positioned fist away and roll him to the left. She went low, shifting her weight back to a more evenly distributed position and kicked his right leg out from under him, rolling with the movement and crashing into his back to make sure the miniature giant actually went down.

For once.

"Outstanding." Brother Joshua drawled dryly, sounding distinctly unimpressed. "You'd better have a jaw made out of steel or simply hope that all your opponents will need to compensate for your abysmal height to rely on that technique."

Tanyth crawled off of Caleb and gave him a hand up, getting a weak grin from her fellow tortured student.

"Again." Brother Joshua barked, military sharp. "And perhaps this time one of you two knuckleheads will get it right."

Tanyth grumbled distinctly unkind things under her breath but settled into their taught fighting stance. It seemed ill-suited for her and made her feel off balance, but Brother Joshua yelled at her if she didn't start with her feet slightly too far apart and her arms raised- her left fist on the outside and her right closer to her body- so she persisted.

This time Caleb surprised her a little and she panicked, opening her left fist into a solid hand and nailing him in the crease of his elbow. Entirely off-line and running on a hundred percent panicked instinct, her right fist cracked into the left side of his bony jaw.

Caleb recovered quickly and shifted forward, bringing his right fist towards her head. Tanyth- still panicked and somewhat on auto pilot- ducked back a little, lashing out with her right hand to hold his right arm in place while her left fist streaked out and socked him square on the other side of the jaw. His attack thoroughly disrupted, she twisted out of his reflexive grip, latching onto his wrist and bringing his right arm behind his back in a rather painful manner before she kicked the back of his closest knee.

Brother Sarno called time, but it was nearly drowned out by the sound of….applause?

"Well done!" King Varian Wrynn boomed- it was sorta hard to mistake for anyone else, given she'd just heard it a few hours ago- and Tanyth immediately scrambled off of Caleb to drop into a proper curtsey, her whole face flushing in mortification.

The King's boots came into view, along with another set of armored feet. "Rise, children. What are your names?"

Tanyth straightened up- still a bit out of sorts from the fight- and was grateful that Caleb- as a male and older than her- had to address the King and Prince Arthas first.

"Caleb Paxton, Your Majesty." Caleb murmured, awe-struck.

"Tanyth, Your Majesty." Since Caleb didn't address Prince Arthas directly, she didn't either. Caleb had more instruction on etiquette than she did, after all.

It was strange to see him….like she was seeing him. Bright silver armor edged with gold with a royal blue cape tied off at the shoulder with the crest of Lordaeron. The belt- well, waist decoration- was a huge lion's head with a silver face and golden mane. The armor shimmered in the midday light, making Tanyth guess that it was enchanted, even the leather undersides. His moss green eyes were bright and firm, much like most of the other Paladins she had met and his blond hair was actually rather lovely, hanging around his face in choppy layers, held in place by his silver crown, and spilling over his shoulders at the back. While the sword from earlier was still securely strapped to his side, the leather-wrapped handle of a truly formidable warhammer or claymore could be seen over the Prince's shoulder.

King Varian was dressed much the same, really. Royal blue fabric draped across his broad shoulders, the lion of the House of Wrynn cinching the garment at the shoulder while silver plate edge with gold met at the waist with Lordaeron's stylized 'L' in gold upon a shield of silver. Unlike Prince Arthas' plain- comparatively- boots, King Varian's knees were protected with smaller, but no less grand, lions. His dark hair was as long as Prince Arthas' but without the layers save for the bangs framing his gemstone green eyes, and he was clean shaven- no doubt for the event earlier. He didn't wear his crown, which was sort of odd but that was really odd was to see him without his 'trademark' scar and it made Tanyth feel small, knowing what she did and yet unable to do anything about any of it.

Who would listen to an Acolyte with no father and no standing?

"Tell me, what do the two of you wish to do once you come of age?" The King asked, his eyes intent and searching for something.

Searching for what Tanyth had no idea, but something inside her unfurled and crept up through her insides like ivy, seizing her with a bewildering amount of terror for such a simple question.

'Get over yourself.' She tried to tell herself firmly, listening with half an ear as Caleb chattered about joining the Army. 'Just say something simple and be done with it. You are not noteworthy. Your answer is not going to alter the course of human history. Idiot.'

"-'course Tanyth's the special one." Caleb was saying cheerfully, slapping said girl on the shoulder and nearly sending her into the grass, headfirst. "Everyone says so."

"Is that so?" The King answered, obviously indulgently, as he smiled down at the strained Tanyth and prompted, "And why do they say that, little one?"

"Oh. Um. I make good bandages?" Tanyth offered weakly, wondering if she could just melt into the scenery and be done with this strange situation. Her stomach rumbled and she blushed even fiercer, ducking her head and mumbling an apology.

"Archbishop Faol always sends the upset babies to Tanyth." Caleb tattled eagerly, despite Tanyth spending a considerable amount of her energy trying to will the chatterbox to shut the hell up. "Last month one of the Noble Houses tried to take her away from the Cathedral but Sister Shaina told them that only Her Majesty Herself could make her change her mind and let Tanyth leave the Church."

"Is that so?" Now the King was definitely amused and Tanyth felt about an inch tall. "But the baby whisperer still hasn't answered my original query." The King's left eyebrow quirked a bit and Tanyth really just wanted to die.

"Oh, um. Well, I'll probably be a traveling healer when the Cathedral turns me out." She managed, twisting her fingers together and wishing she was anywhere but right where she was. "I'm not really serious enough for the Priesthood and I don't really like being ordered around like a minion- eep! I mean!" Tanyth waved her hands about trying to make the statement seem less….bitchy. "I just don't think I'd be any good in the Army. Or as a maid in a Noble's house." She blurted out lamely, snapping her hands back together and smiling sickly at the King. "So, traveling healer is my best prospect right now."

"Hm. I see." The King allowed, the corners of his mouth turning down into a frown for a moment before he smiled and dismissed them.

Tanyth didn't purposefully trip Caleb on the last step before the outside landing, honest!

-XXX-

Time went on in that timeless manner the Cathedral seemed to personify. People came to be healed, weddings were held, some sought guidance, others merely came to the morning and evening worship sessions and through it all Tanyth's routine stayed unchanged.

In the interim Tanyth had discovered her newest thing to passionately loathe: heavy silk bandages.

"Stupid frickin fraddled bullshit-" Tanyth mumbled lowly- far too low for anyone to hear, she wasn't stupid even if Sister Shaina and the others were currently in a meeting elsewhere- as she viciously stabbed her needle into her pincushion and dug out her seamripper. "Miscount one freaking stitch and fuck the whole thing up, stupid idiotic bandages and their stupid design-" She grumbled as she neatly slit the last hours' worth of stitching. With more vigor than strictly required.

The crying of a baby bounced off the stone walls unpleasantly and Tanyth spared a prayer to the Light that it wasn't the horrid monster-child of House Vanyst. The wife was a shrill shrew named Karisa and the baby was truly the daughter of such a deeply unpleasant woman, as slightly ashamed as Tanyth was to think such of an infant. Paisley was sweet enough when sufficiently removed from her mother, but otherwise the baby girl gave Tanyth screaming headaches.

"Tanyth." Archbishop Faol's voice was slightly swallowed by the size of the main hall, but Tanyth knew that he knew she could hear him so she sighed, set her work down, and padded out the sideroom with all the cheer of a woman facing the firing squad.

Once her slippers hit the runner that ran between the support columns and the hall itself, she paused, perplexed at what she was seeing.

The Queen of the Kingdom of Stormwind was in the Cathedral's main hall, near the pews at the front, her Royal Guard escort fanned out around her, keeping everyone else away from her area of the pews. She was taller than Tanyth had believed, with bright, sky blue eyes, wavy blonde hair and a ready, if tired seeming, smile. The Queen's attire was a white and purple dress made of fine silk that seemed to float around her form, as stupid as that sounded. She was also holding the angry baby that Tanyth had heard earlier.

Archbishop Faol's pointed look at her dallying form had Tanyth shaking her head to clear her wandering thoughts and walking again.

"Your Majesty." She curtsied to the beautiful blonde woman holding the squalling infant once she was within range. Once the Queen of Stormwind made a noise of acknowledgement- or at least Tanyth thought the woman did, but with the baby and the frantic mommy noises she wasn't absolutely certain- Tanyth turned expectantly to the Archbishop. "You called for me, Archbishop Faol?"

The man's pope hat made him seem tall, despite his rather short stature. His white robes, edged in gold and threaded with both crimson and silver sigils, seemed to glow in an ethereal manner under the light falling through the windows. His dark hair and brown eyes were kind, though, and his laugh lines a testament to the amount of time the Archbishop spent smiling when tending to his congregation. The man gave her an amused quirk of the eyebrow, leaning heavily on his staff of office as he answered, "Her Majesty has heard of your skills with children and she wishes to avail Herself of your services."

There was a definite undercurrent of amusement there.

The Queen huffed and gave the Archbishop a flat, droll look. "Alonsus my child has kept me awake for three nights in a row with his teething fussing, if she can get him to take a nap I'm stealing her."

Tanyth smothered a quiet laugh and approached the Queen. The baby stopped wailing long enough to peer curiously at her, so she smiled as wide as she could manage and held her arms out towards him. Prince Anduin- for it could only be the future High King of the Alliance- seemed to inspect her, grabbing a hand with one of his tiny ones and pulling it towards his mouth to chew on. Tanyth let him, coating her fingers in the Light- she never could use the tiny amount you were supposed to use when imbuing bandages, but she had plenty of practice channeling the energy-and then having to quickly catch the young prince when he decided that she was someone who was allowed to hold him.

The Cathedral went quiet, save for the shuffle of the staff and the baby's delighted giggles at Tanyth's silly faces as she paced, letting him gnaw on her fingers.

"Praise the Light." The Queen sighed gratefully, sinking down onto one of the pews while intently observing Tanyth entertain the young prince. "We tried everything." She whispered to Archbishop Faol softly.

Entirely ignoring the quiet conversation between the Archbishop and the Queen, Tanyth enjoyed her new acquaintance with Anduin. He had eyes three shades deeper than his father and a half shade brighter than his mother and his mother's fair hair. He was chubby and adorable and- oh, that was a sleepy blink. Tanyth hummed, shifting the baby into a shoulder and letting his sleepy blinks taper out into full sleep before she gently pried her other hand from his grasp.

Baby Anduin was criminally adorable.

Rubbing his back absently she made her way over to the Queen and the Archbishop. "Here-"

"Oh no you don't!" The Queen hissed urgently, halting Tanyth's attempts to give the baby back to her. The blonde woman pointed at Tanyth almost accusingly. "You're coming with me! Anduin's never taken to someone like that- he didn't even take to my mother that easily! No, you're coming with me and playing nursemaid." The Queen visibly restrained herself, smiled in a rather maniac manner, and amended, "At least for today. I am desperate for some rest."

More amused than anything, Tanyth did her best to curtsey without disturbing the baby. "As you wish, Your Majesty."

The Queen gave Archbishop Faol a look that obviously meant something important- though its meaning went right over Tanyth's head- before she smiled and gestured for Tanyth to follow her, the Royal Guard forming around them.

The walk from the Cathedral Square to Stormwind Keep took them along the canals that spanned the city, making the skirt the Trade District and then pass through the high end residential district of Old Town. Tanyth did her best to look around while also not doing something unforgivable- like drop the Prince- and she was quietly impressed by the Queen's unfailing grace. The exhausted mother was stopped nearly a dozen times along the way to the Keep and never once did she complain or give the person a cold shoulder. While the Queen heard her subjects Tanyth soothed the prince and appreciated the sheer artistry of the builders.

The city was all blue-grey stone with the blue backed, golden lion banners of Stormwind opposite the banner of Lordaeron or one of the other Alliance kingdoms at every arch. The walkways over the canals were tall enough to allow small gondolas to pass through without being excessive and there were small gardens edged with rock or decorative brickwork at evenly spaced intervals, with some areas having small mini-parks with benches as well.

"They must have poured their hearts into making this place home." She murmured as they passed into Old Town, having seen large parts of the city when it had still been largely ruined when she first came here nearly six years ago.

The difference was…..breathtaking.

"Hmmmm?" The Queen asked, her attention snapping to Tanyth like a shark scenting blood. "What did you say?"

"Oh, um. I said that the Stonemasons must have poured their hearts into their work. To make Stormwind feel so alive." Tanyth clarified, feeling somewhat bold about her whimsical observations. "I saw it when I came here right after the Cathedral was cleared for use and the difference is astounding." Tanyth shrugged as best she could with a drooling baby on one shoulder, feeling a bit self-conscious. "People who build something like this- it's not just a job, it's a calling. An art. And that makes all the difference between yet another city of stone and a home worth fighting for." Tanyth then remembered that she was lecturing the literal Queen and blanched. "I mean- uh-"

"No. Don't backpedal." The Queen told her firmly, laying a hand on Tanyth's shoulder and looking past the guards at someone. "Would you agree with that assessment, Edwin?"

What. The. Fuck.

Edwin? As in Edwin VanCleef?

How was this Tanyth's life? She was a bandage maker at the Cathedral of Light. She was nobody!

"Sense is most often found in the ranks of the common folk." The man drawled, sounding tired but hopeful to Tanyth's ears. "I find the Nobles astonishingly disconnected from anything resembling wisdom."

"I have to somewhat agree." The Queen replied somewhat wryly, smiling brightly instead of seeming insulted. She smiled down at Tanyth, seeming exceedingly pleased. "You'll forgive me if I borrow that argument in the next session of the Council of Nobles I hope?"

Tanyth couldn't help herself, she snorted a sardonic laugh. "Your Majesty, anything that gets those pompous jerks to uphold their commitments makes me happy enough to dance a jig." Then Tanyth cursed her idiotic brain and sighed. "Present company excluded, of course."

The Queen laughed, wrapping an arm around Tanyth and dragging them forwards, waving at someone- Edwin, Tanyth guessed- as they passed them. "You, dear, are a treasure. I think I really might just keep you."

-XXX-

Being led through Stormwind Keep was an….experience. Tanyth found- given the Queen's chatter, which Tanyth suspected the woman was mostly using to keep herself awake- that the King was out, off settling issues in the territories. As it was Saturday the Queen hadn't needed to hold Court today, so the massive stone building was rather empty, save for staff and the occasional Noble or distinguished guest.

The Keep itself was rather formidable. It was cut off from the city by a large section of the canals- much deeper, too- that drained out through a small metal grate. There was a large, overlooking guard tower to protect the Keep from the Old Town side of things, and the canal runoff area served as a natural barrier, especially given the prime defense potion the archers on the Keep's outer walls would have.

From the city, the Keep was accessed via a thick wooden drawbridge that laid over the widening section of the canals that eventually pooled in the runoff area where the city's wall dead-ended.

Once through the massive stone archway Tanyth was greeted by two stone staircases that curved around a neat little courtyard with benches and a small collection of trees, wildflowers, lush green grass, and a happily burbling fountain. The intimidating, cool stone of the keep was broken up by trailing ivy, banners, and random waterfalls of plants with bright blooms. It was rather confusing, is pleasant, sight as there were no visible windows in the massive structure.

Weird.

The doors of the Keep were wide open, though pairs of guardsmen could be seen in every corner, with more pairs patrolling the areas above the two guard towers on either side of the wide open doors.

Stormwind Keep's interior was decorated much the same as the rest of Stormwind, with the banners of Stormwind interspersed with the banners of the kingdoms that had stood by her in her times of need. Lordaeron was most prominently honored, but even Gilneas and Stromgarde's banners held places of honor along the long hallway- that had plenty of side rooms- to the throne.

The throne room itself was a circular room with thick wooden doors leading off into various side rooms, the gold and blue throne of Stormwind's King the most prominent feature, situated beneath yet another, even more grandiose, intricately embroidered banner.

The Queen led them into the leftmost door- the one with the Royal Banner, the official House of Wrynn crest boldly emblazoned on the purple material- and up a dizzyingly amount of stairs with at least three left turns and into the family wing.

"This is Anduin's nursery." The Queen informed Tanyth as they entered a wide, open room about halfway down a hallway that dead ended at a truly beautiful set of oak doors. "The maids- ah! Good." The woman twirled around, placing her hands on her hips and giving Tanyth a truly exhausted smile. "There's a daybed in here so I can get some rest."

A redhaired woman came into view from behind a panel of silken curtains.

"Ah, good." The Queen gestured to the newly arrived woman, who gave Tanyth a shallow bow, much to the girl's confusion. "Tanyth meet Hollyanne Taylor, Captain Jonathan Taylor's wife and Anduin's nursemaid. We just call her Holly, though."

"It's nice to meet you, Lady Tanyth." Hollyanne greeted Tanyth respectfully- which was way weird. "I am extremely grateful that the prince seems to settled peacefully. All the rest he's gotten the past week has been troubled."

"It's just Tanyth, Lady Taylor, and I'm happy to help." Tanyth chirped, eying the Queen suspiciously. "I think we ought to get Her Majesty to bed before she collapses, though."

"Excellent idea, I'm going." The Queen fussed, glancing back towards Anduin several times.

Tanyth huffed a laugh and walked over to the daybed and gently laid the prince down next to his mother. Anduin began to fuss as soon as Tanyth let go of him, but quickly settled down once she began to rub his back and hum softly. She was a bit uncomfortable, down on her knees beside the daybed, with one arm braced against the frame and the other soothing the prince, but it was worth the discomfort to see how the Queen relaxed at having her son nearby her.

The Queen spared the girl an indulgent, warm smile. "Definitely keeping you." She murmured, curling around her son and patting Tanyth's bracing arm affectionately.

Tanyth answered with a smile and continued to hum softly.

-XXX-

Her knees ached, her legs were numb, and she had a major crick in her back. At least Anduin seemed to be happy with her just rubbing his back with a Light-covered hand so she didn't have to keep humming.

Holly, seated on a chair nearby, smiled sympathetically at her. "If it's any consolation." The older woman informed her softly, her voice pitched low enough to not disturb the Queen or the Prince. "I don't think I've seen either of them sleep so soundly since they came to the Keep."

Tanyth kept up her ministrations, checking on the little prince's breathing to make sure everything was alright, before she turned curious eyes to Holly. "They haven't always lived in the Keep?"

"Oh, goodness no!" Holly laughed softly, her hands clasped together neatly on her lap. "With the King off consolidating territories Queen Tiffin spent her pregnancy and most of the first three months afterwards in Lordaeron, she and Princess Calia grew up together, much like King Varian and Prince Arthas. Princess Calia has several years on Queen Tiffin, of course, but they are still quite close. Calia delivered Anduin mostly on her own with support from the Old Castle's healers."

"The Old Castle?" Tanyth queried, wondering where she had heard that before.

"Oh! That's what Lordaeron's Keep is called, dear. It's one of the Keeps that is rumored to have been built by King Thoradin himself, back during the times of the Troll Wars." The woman lifted a silk covered, delicate shoulder in an unconcerned shrug. "At any rate it's rumored to be the oldest keep in the Eastern Kingdoms, though there are those that dispute that claim."

"Huh. Neat." Tanyth chirped with a smile. "I was born in the refugee camp near Alterac, so I never stepped foot inside, but we could see the keep from across Lordamere Lake. The banners were always really pretty against the sky."

Holly went to respond, but Anduin grunted in his sleep and both of the awake females knew that sort of grunt. "I'll set up the changing station." Holly told Tanyth with a grin, leaving the younger girl to wrestle the boy out of the Queen's grip.

"He just needs changed and probably fed, Your Majesty, I'll bring him right back." Tanyth murmured quietly to the mostly-still-asleep women, receiving a barely-there nod and a sleepy acceptance for her efforts.

The changing table was actually rather nice, all things considered. At the Cathedral Tanyth just had to make do with any flat surface and her bag of supplies.

While there was indoor plumbing of a sort in Stormwind, chamber pots and the like were still very much a thing. Which meant that Tanyth had the (un)enviable task of manually scraping off the solid waste before placing the soiled cloth diaper in its proper receptacle. If it sounded gross to hear about, it was even grosser in person. Quickly washing her hands in the provided basin- which was quickly whisked away by one of the maids- she cleaned, powdered, and wrapped a clean diaper around the little Prince, cooing at him through the smell of baby poo.

Baby poo was its own special band of gag worthy.

Once that bit of unpleasantness was over and done with- and her hands were cleaned again, much to Holly's amusement- Tanyth handed Anduin over to the nursemaid. Tanyth had been at the Keep long enough for morning to give way to the afternoon, so the chances of the baby being hungry were pretty high, in her opinion.

One he was fed, burped and back with his mother the women resumed their chatting. The maids brought in some finger foods and Tanyth was so grateful she could have hugged them.

"So you are a Ward of the Church, then?" Holly asked Tanyth around a cracker laden with sharp cheese and a couple slices of red apples.

"Not really, I live with my cousin, who is a Sister of the Association of Clerics." Tanyth grinned at the slightly blank stare she got in response to that answer and hurried to explain, despite her shoving a cracker of her own into her greedy mouth. "The Cleric Order is different from the Priesthood 'cause they don't do field work. Sister Shaina is a First Aid trainer- one of the best in Stormwind- and she happens to serve at the Cathedral, so I live there." Tanyth shrugged and gulped down some apple juice before hastily adding. "I almost don't make the cut to be considered 'family'. Sister Shaina is my Mama's sister's daughter. The Order only recognizes first cousins, anything beyond that has to be a direct apprentice instead of a dependent." The girl grinned wryly. "I make bandages to earn my keep, but I don't think it's my life's calling like Sister Shaina, though."

The woman seemed troubled. "Excuse my ignorance, but I thought that the bulk of the displaced citizens of Stormwind settled in Southshore?"

"Only the actual citizens of the old city." Tanyth explained gently, wondering how in the hell the woman hadn't known that. There had been at least seven camps for the displaced people from all the territories affected by Stormwind's fall at the hands of the Orcs, all ruled over by one of the Noble Houses. "My family was from Westfall originally. Farmers and tradesmen, cloth- tailors- mostly. We weren't…err, 'desirable' enough to settle in Southshore, so we ended up in a camp."

The other woman seemed pained, but Tanyth just shrugged and helped herself to more food- as best as she could one-handed, the other one yet again soothing the young Prince. It was ancient history by now for all it had made a major impact on her outlook on life.

The other woman seemed even more saddened by Tanyth's easy acceptance of such a fact and the two lapsed into silence.

Given leave to ignore the need to make polite conversation, Tanyth looked around. The room was rounded, with wide, arched windows draped with sheer curtains. From the outside Tanyth hadn't seen any such windows, so there must be magic or sleight-of-hand trickery happening. The room was quite baby friendly, full of sinfully soft plush rugs and a rather bewildering amount of toys. The ceiling had grooves in the stone that she assumed were actually small tracts for the gauzy curtain-divider thingies, like the one by the Queen's daybed. There was a fat support pillar in the center of the room, tastefully disguising the fact it was also a storage cabinet- she had seen the maids grab supplies from it earlier.

All in all it was open, breezy, and rather calm. Cheerful even, given the golden and blue mini-banners suspended from the ceiling.

A bit much for a toddler but then again this was Prince Anduin's nursery, so. Yeah.

-XXX-

When the Queen woke the sun was shining orange through the clear glass, staining the polished areas of the floor deep red and burnt amber. Tanyth had been getting worried, she had never missed evening service at the Cathedral and she didn't want to worry her cousin. And no matter how practiced she was at full days of channeling the power of the Light, she was beginning to tire. She was nowhere near dangerously exhausted, but she was weary.

And her knees were bruised, she was pretty sure, despite one of the maids bringing over one of the sinfully fluffy plush rugs for her to kneel on during one of Anduin's changing-and-feeing times.

"Ah-huhhn." The Queen yawned, still seeming tired but a bit refreshed from her nap. She blinked slowly, levering herself up onto her arms, her bright eyes fixed on her son for a long moment before she looked up. "You're a miracle worker…dear."

The Queen looked as if she was struggling with something and Tanyth took pity on her, the woman had been absolutely exhausted earlier. "Tanyth, Your Majesty."

"Tanyth!" The Queen repeated, bringing up her free hand to rub at her face, disturbing the kohl around her eyes. "I knew that."

Tanyth laughed softly, clasping her hands together and seeing if Anduin would protest. "Of course, Majesty. Was there anything else?"

The Queen's gaze snapped around to Tanyth with startling intensity. "You can't leave now!" The woman bargained desperately as if she wasn't the most powerful authority in the Kingdom, save for the King himself. "You're my lucky charm!"

"I think that's the first time I've ever been called that." Tanyth returned, dry as the sands of the Barrens. She was well aware of her penchant for messing up, requiring her to start over on projects.

Like bullshit heavy silk bandages.

"Well that's your new title." The Queen returned rather grumpily, her smeared makeup making her seem much more a mortal woman than her earlier flawless poise.

"I took the liberty of sending your cousin a message earlier, Tanyth." Holly broke in with a smile. "She won't be expecting you back at the Cathedral tonight, and-"

"-I'll send her a message or go talk to her tomorrow, so that you can retrieve your things." The Queen finished tiredly, rubbing at her eyes and making herself look more like a raccoon. "You really are Lightsent, Tanyth, I thought I was going to go completely insane and I felt so helpless seeing my baby suffer like that." She ran her kohl smeared hand over Anduin's back, smearing black onto his blue outfit by accident. "Damn it." She cursed as she moved her hand away, the black streaking into Anduin's light, baby peachfuzz hair. "I need a bath."

"One is being prepared as we speak, Your Majesty." A new voice broke in, and Tanyth looked over to see a stern, dark haired woman in a crisp, pinstriped uniform, the seal of Stormwind on the left breast. On the shoulder there were other patches, but Tanyth didn't recognize any of them.

"Thank you, Lorelei." The Queen sighed gratefully, placing Tanyth's hand back onto Anduin's back when the baby began to fuss. "To the baths with us. Lorelei will get you something fresh to wear to dinner and then we'll call it a night." The Queen swung her legs over the edge of the daybed and booped her son on the nose, the baby having rolled himself over while she had been talking.

He seemed content enough, so long as Tanyth's hand was on him, which meant the Queen had plenty of opportunities to interact with the happy baby.

"Yes, I think I'll just have us sleep in my rooms for the night." The Queen decided, picking up her son and seeming pleased as punch when Tanyth allowed Anduin to gnaw on her Light-coated fingers.

The woman led them out of the nursery and down the hall a few rooms to the biggest, most extravagant bath Tanyth had ever seen- in either life. It was made of white and blue stone and was pretty much room-wide, with stairs and water jets- Tanyth wasn't sure how that was possible, but whatever- and deliciously steamy.

"Tomorrow, perhaps, I can have the Archmage and the Archbishop over. Maybe they can rig a teething ring or something so you don't have to constantly allow him to chew on you." The woman rolled her eyes quite expressively before beginning to shimmy out of her clothes. "The Noble Ladies would have a fit. Heaven forbid the Prince act like the baby he is." The mother snorted derisively and chucked her clothes into a nearby basket before stepping into the large bath in the middle of the room.

Tanyth laughed, a soft release of air that was largely drowned out by the water rushing from the taps. There were so many bubbles; they even changed colors. Tanyth was deeply jealous.

The Queen cracked an eye open and gave Tanyth a distinct look. "Well, what are you waiting for? Hand my baby to Holly and strip, kiddo. It's bath time."

Having long grown accustomed to communal baths, Tanyth handed over Anduin- who glared suspiciously and began to whine- and shucked off her linen dress, slippers, and undergarment before embracing the ridiculous swimming pool the Queen called a bath. She felt ridiculously happy with a crown of bubbles on her head and paddled over to the Prince and Holly when they entered, though she kept the Prince from chewing on her.

The glorious bath didn't seem to take nearly as long as she wanted, but soon enough she was scrubbed clean- by a maid, despite Tanyth's protests- dressed in a comfortable, simple white cotton dress and ushered to dinner.

It was after they arrived that Tanyth was unceremoniously reminded why she had wanted to stay far away from the Keep and the Court.

Lady Katrana Prestor smiled unpleasantly sweetly when the Queen asked her to move down a spot to make room for Tanyth. Her starless sky black hair shone blue under the flickering lights of the chandeliers and her ocean blue eyes anything but kind and understanding.

Very carefully Tanyth did not allow herself to react, but inside she was freaking the fuck out. 'That is one of the nastiest Black dragons to ever exist and now she knows my name!' To compound Tanyth's terror, there was an itch underneath her skin, an annoyingly persistent one that tugged at her attention and made her clumsy. She spilled a glass of apple juice and nearly screeched like a scalded cat the one time Katrana touched her arm to get her attention.

By the time dinner was over Tanyth had a pounding, shrieking headache and was barely able to put one foot in front of the other.

So she didn't see Queen Tiffin's eyes narrow in suspicion, nor did she notice that Lady Prestor noticed Queen Tiffin spotting Tanyth's reaction to Lady Prestor's presence.

Tanyth would regret her lapse in judgement for the rest of her life.

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