This was not what she had expected.

Melaina was careful to continue moving, her body twisting like the turn of a tide, her hands weaving like kelp in the water. She moved through the tavern as a shark through the waters, with an ethereal grace that did not quite belong but was too alluring to cast aside.

For the most part, the crowded inn seemed to ignore her as part of the basic structure of the place, which was fine. They were subconsciously aware of her, and more than one had tossed a coin or two her way as they left. She would have enough to pay for meals for the next few days, at least, especially as she didn't intend to stay here tonight.

The inn was filled with people. Corone, she had learned, was a potluck of races. Dark elves and humans hung about the tavern aplenty, and she spotted a few dwarves here and there, drinking their weight in ale. The Drakari were few but stood out, their draconian features marking them immediately for what they were. The strangest creature she could see was one she had not spied before. They appeared human at a glance, but there was an ethereal shine just beneath their skin that gave them a tantalizing glow, and something like magic danced in their silver eyes. Long silver hair fell in waves around her shoulders, and with her pale skin glowing so, she appeared ghostly.

She ignored Melaina, just as she ignored the other people around her. The only thing that seemed to grasp her attention was the steaming mug in her hand. But Melaina couldn't seem to look away from her, fascinated, drawn. The woman's lips curved up at the edges just slightly, an almost imperceptible smile, and Melaina stared at her face, wondering who she was. Wondering what she was.

"Oy, girly!"

Melaina didn't jump but it was a close thing. She turned to look at the human who had called out. He was staring at her, his eyes rheumy with drink, his cheeks red and glowing. Drunk as a drowned lamb in her seas, but he had a couple coins in his hands and tossed them at her.

"Sing us a song, love." The coins made their own music as they hit the ground at her feet - a music she could dance to all night.

Melaina gave an elegant bow in acceptance and spun, twirling her arms around until they reaching elegantly for the ceiling. She paused a moment, letting the silence draw the attention of the tavern, and it quieted in response. She felt the tingle on her lips as she called forth her born magics. She opened her mouth and let her Siren Song free.

"She was a creature born of the sea,
Silver fins dancing like light.
She was a creature who swam far beneath
Where human eyes can reach - day or night.

She was born of the tides, fierce, full of rage,
Their crash and pull like the ticks of a clock.
But she knew the sea was but a big cage,
And the tides were her key and her lock.

She could swim forth from the sea, she did think,
If she was clever and quick as a seal.
She could pull herself out of the depths of the drink,
If she and the sea made a deal.

She would look back forever and long
At the sea that had once been her home.
Her love for it would rise forth in every sung song,
And she'd miss it wherever she roamed.

The sea made her promise and so promised her
That yes, she'd swim beyond the shore,
But no matter how far she moved from the stir
This would be a burden she'd bore:

The sea would call out to her - "come back to me,
For I am home and safe haven and life."
But she would flee, running, on fins turned to feet,
As vagrant as an alewife.

She would run upon grasses and stones and flat lands,
And she would call no place ever her home,
But her feet would ache forever for the heat of the sands,
And perhaps one day she would cease to roam.

Go back to the sea from which she was born,
Go back to the waters of life.
Go back to the place her heart did so mourn,
Go back to a time before strife."

Melaina turned her final twist into a slow bow, letting the silence of her song's ending carry over the tavern until it was interrupted by the clink of coin on the floor at her feet. She watched the pile of funds grow as her Siren's Song burned in her throat, begging her to sing more of the sea, but the daresn't test her boundaries. Already this place was too filled with emotions, people angry at one another - a conflict that had not yet come to a close keeping people at odds. But for the moment, they were hers to have, together in their admiration of her, and she gave another gentle bow, accepting coins from the hands of drunken admirers.

"An interesting song that tells an interesting tale."

Melaina turned, startled. The silver-haired woman with the ethereal eyes was standing beside her, watching her closely. She held out a hand and, without really thinking about it, Melaina took what she offered. "What a pity the part about being born of the sea is a lie."

And then she was gone. Not walking away, not slipping into shadows, but gone. Melaina stared at the spot she had stood a moment ago, then looked into her hand.

The woman had handed her a coin, but it was not the silver or gold of those that covered the floor, but made of a soft green glass, translucent and shining. Melaina might have accepted it as coincidence, or perhaps a coin passed to the silver lady if not for the fact that this was a unique piece. And one that Melaina recognized.