My eyes fluttered open, and gradually, my surroundings came into focus. Walls of ice and stone encircled me. Had we returned to the checkpoint? I lifted my head for a better look. No, we were somewhere else, and I could only deduce we were inside the Nexus itself.

"Klara!" Felenn's voice drifted toward me. I heard her robe whispering along the icy floor as she came to me. She knelt on the pile of furs on which I lay, another pelt and a blanket covering me, keeping me warm. "Ah, it's good to see you awake."

"How long have I been unconscious?" I asked, still drowsy.

"It is night now, so practically most of today and all yesterday."

"What?" I wheezed. "I hindered you all by two days?"

"Don't worry. We reached the Nexus shortly after you passed out," Araellor voiced and joined us. He remained standing, looking down at me. "That crevice led to another passage a little further along, and it gave us a fairly safe route here. We've simply remained here until we determine how well you are and if you can continue."

"But ... for two days?"

He smiled. "Don't feel bad about it. It hasn't been entirely fruitless."

I pushed myself up onto my elbows, quickly noting my shoulder felt perfectly fine. Felenn plumped some furs for me to sit back against then she proceeded to check on my foot. "You've found the cure?" I couldn't hide the disappointment in my voice. The thought the item had been located without any input from me was discouraging.

"No. But Garret and Aden have managed to get some ...whatever it is they gather and study out here and seem pleased with their findings."

"So, we still have to locate the cure?" I wanted it confirmed.

Araellor nodded. "Yes, you haven't missed out on the action – besides your own, that is." He gestured to my foot.

I felt embarrassed and foolish at that point. "Yeah. I'm sorry about that."

"Well, it pays to be mindful of where you step out here. You survived. But it could have been a lot worse."

His words made me feel even more awkward and foolish. Rightly so, when I thought about it. I was lucky he didn't shout at me I suppose. Or take me back to the Shield and report me as a risk to the expedition. He huffed and made to walk away, but I called him back. I had to express my gratitude. Without his aid, I would not have made it back to the surface of that crevice and would likely have become serpent fodder. That was a certainty. So why was it proving so hard to do? I looked up at him almost pleadingly. There was a long, painful silence. Then he nodded abruptly before walking over to where Garret and Aden were sitting.

Air whooshed between my teeth.

"I'm sorry," Felenn said, thinking she'd hurt me while tending to my injury.

"Oh, no, I wasn't meaning..." I sighed heavily, flopped back onto the furs and stared at the blue-white ceiling, internally kicking myself - with my good foot.

"He was very brave, you know," Felenn said softly.

"Yeah. I've no doubt. I just feel very ...stupid right now."

I heard her huff. "You must overcome your dislike of him, Klara."

I scoffed. "Hit a woman when she's down, why don't you?"

Her elven face lined up to mine. She was unearthly beautiful, and her kind and sweet nature shone through her eyes. As did something else. Something I just couldn't pinpoint but decided it was unimportant for now. This young she-elf had aided two of us already on this excursion. Two humans, no less. Not once did she falter or hesitate because of our differences. I admired that. Perhaps even envied her. She fussed over the furs around my head and tucked the blanket around me. "We have all had experiences which mould us," she said softly. "Some are pleasant, others are harsh and cruel."

I just knew she was going to confide in something deeply personal. I locked eyes with her and listened, attentively.

"I know what Arthas did to your home. It was barbaric to some. A divisive but necessary act to others."

I shifted, unsure what to feel as she made me relive some of my darkest moments.

"Did he perhaps do your city and surrounding villages a favour? With the loss of friends and family, it is understandable for you to see his decision as brutal and unforgiving. I do wonder though, what might have happened had he not acted as he did. Would all our homelands now be overrun with the scourge? Would families that had not been turned by the grain, still be alive? As you knew and loved them?"

I couldn't fathom where she was going with this, but I also couldn't deny her words held a sorrowful truth, a valid regard. I hadn't considered the alternative if Stratholme had just been allowed to continue untouched, left to its own devices. I respectfully kept listening as her voice of reason unfolded some other truths of which I'd been shamefully unaware.

"You know what Arthas did to my home, too, yes?"

I nodded, although the details I had were sparse.

"My city was also left ravaged," she continued. "Its people murdered, reanimated. He even enslaved our Ranger General, Sylvanas Windrunner, first by killing her and using his accursed blade to imprison her soul before turning her into a banshee, condemning her to serve him in his wicked deeds. Ninety per cent of the elves were slaughtered, Klara. Ninety per cent! High elves...are now few."

I could say nothing. But I felt her pain, her loss. Intensely. Captivated by her story, I listened as she carried on.

"My life started out no better, really. My real parents were murdered...a long time ago."

It was as if a huge shard of ice just fell on me. Her tragic start in life was indeed a shock, but my mind was trying to unravel the facts, retracing what she'd told me in our room at the Shield.

She nodded, seemingly aware of what I was thinking. A wistful smile graced her lips as she explained further. "The Morrowreads were a childless couple in Silvermoon. I was found by a young mage, no less, and they took me to Silvermoon, where I was placed in the care of my adoptive parents. Caidathol and Mirrea were good people, kind, caring and very loving. But I was, to begin with, a rebellious youngster..."

I scoffed, then apologised. "I can't imagine you being a handful," I said.

"Oh, but I was, I assure you." Laughter, like the sound of tiny bells, broached the space between us. "But soon I learned how to behave. I learned much from my new parents, and I loved them dearly." She paused - poignantly. "They were amongst the casualties from Arthas' assault." A tremor in her voice, a hitch of breath and I knew that she just relived another painful moment in her life.

I sat, open-mouthed. I'd never considered how Felenn and the high elves had suffered. All by the same hands that had dealt such a blow to my people. Arthas had demonstrated no prejudice when it came to traversing his path to glory. Human, elf, dwarf, gnome and dranaei - all had, and still shared, horrific losses during his reign. How ignorant I'd been. I'd never given any real consideration to those outside of human realms.

With a delicate sniff, Felenn continued. "The young mage who originally placed me with the Morrowreads found me again and brought me to Dalaran when the Kirin Tor first moved it to Northrend. I lived in private quarters until the internships began. That was when I met you."

All I could think to express was sorrow for what she'd endured. I took her hands in mine. There were no words I could think of, and trying to utter any felt somehow disrespectful. She had yet more to tell.

"I used to listen to you when you shared your pain with Geraldine and Melissa. I realised there were similarities with what we had both been through. But I sensed your distrust of my kind."

I bowed my head, ashamed. Regretful. And Felenn, in her usual manner, placed a comforting hand on my arm.

"We all have tragedy somewhere in our lives, Klara. And sometimes, it is that pain which bonds us." Her eyes flicked over to Araellor. "He too, has suffered a tragedy. His mother was a mage as you know. She was unique too, not only because of her ability to wield magic but also because of her heritage."

"You actually knew her?"

"No, I only know what Araellor told me while you were resting."

My curiosity was piqued. I recalled the days I enjoyed listening to gossip in Dalaran and so I pressed for more information from Felenn. I wanted to know about Araellor's mother and this mysterious 'heritage' that she'd mentioned.

"You have noticed how there are subtle differences between Araellor's appearance to that of the high elves, yes?"

I nodded. The high elves were tall in comparison to humans, but they tended to be of a slender build. Araellor, on the other hand, apart from being visibly taller still, had a much bulkier, stronger build. Robust.

"Do high elf males have tattoos on their bodies?" I asked without thinking.

Felenn smirked. "No, they do not. What made you ask that, Klara?"

I blushed. Almost hot enough to melt the ice. Of all the things to ask, I had to inquire about something so personal, intimate, and bloody random! The washroom incident had a lot to answer for! I still couldn't tell her about it. "Oh, I just... heard Araellor mention his tattoos," I said, furiously willing my flush to fade.

Whether Felenn bought my story or not, I don't know, but right then, I was more interested in what my elven roommate had to tell me. She obliged.

"Araellor is from a very elusive elven race known as night elves, or Children of the Stars as they are known in Darnassian - their mother tongue. They hail from Kalimdor across the Great Sea and southwest of Northrend. They're among the oldest races known on Azeroth."

Felenn spoke of the night elves with such reverence that I was utterly entranced. I was also suitably impressed by her knowledge. I had seriously underestimated this young woman. Unfairly so, too.

"His mother, a very proficient mage, sought out the Kirin Tor, because arcane magic, in which she specialised, had been banned by their Archdruid, Malfurion Stormrage. Araellor's mother dared not use her powers in Kalimdor; it was punishable by death. Therefore, she came to our shores many years ago with her son and sought out the Magocrasy. Of course, she was still very secretive, so very few ever saw her - or her son, - or even knew about their kind. Archmage Modera embraced her though, and they became firm friends."

That explained a little more about our intrepid hunter and protector. I learned much from Felenn that day, not only about herself but also about Araellor. I didn't need to ask her why she told me what she did. I knew she wanted to help me get over my aversion to the elven people. To understand that wickedness could touch us all and that every race has the capability to be either good or bad.

I honestly couldn't state, right at that moment, that I was any closer to becoming a top fan of elves, but I was certainly much less biased than I had been for months.

And out of the two, it was Felenn's story which touched me the most. I couldn't imagine what it must be like to have lost not only your birth parents so brutally but also those who'd adopted you, who loved you as if you were their own. Yet, here she was, kind, caring, compassionate and vulnerable. I believed there was still more to this young she-elf. Certainly, I had grown and matured somewhat from listening to her stories; lessons not learned in a classroom. And perhaps she would surprise me more. 

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So, we learn more about Felenn and Araellor. Do you think all this information will help Klara with her aversion to elves? Hope so, but there's never any telling with her, really, is there? 

Thanks for coming along and reading all about Klara and her companions. Another instalment next Wednesday.