Strange Company. -Open.-

The cold nipped at the Earth, its harsh kisses leaving small clues that winter would be upon the land soon. The lush green leaves slowly changing their shades of hue. A symphony of colors peppered the forest, deep reds, pale yellows, crisp orange tones and earthy browns scattered the limbs of the trees.

Winter’s wind swept across the ground picking up with fallen leaves and tossing them into a cascading motion, they swirled, dipped low and soared back towards the heaven before slowly swaying back to the ground. A small cottage laid nestled in the forest, surrounded by large trees that hid the small building from view of the path that led to the city.

The soft sound of singing that was accompanied by the sweet sultry sound of a violin was easily carried across the way of the wind. “Are you, are you coming to the tree. Where they hung a man they said he murdered three.” The open windows allowed the velvety sound of a woman’s voice slip from the brick cottage. The shrill of the violin peeked high and dipped low harmonizing with her faint voice. The song rolled to an end as McKinley laid her beloved violin in the safety of its case. The sound of a small dog whimper echoed off the stone walls, “oh Nymeria hush now I have to go get the clothes off the line before that storm rolls in.” Her hand laid against the large calico dire wolf’s head.

Gripping her deep purple cloak she quickly wrapped it around her small curvy frame. Her fiery mane came to life against the dark color. “Now stay here because last time you tried to help I had to rewash the clothes because you thought it a good idea to roll in mud and shake next to the line.” She tisked at the large beast.

She scooped up the wicker basket to place the clothes in and headed for the back door. As soon as the door opened the wind nipped at her cheeks. A small shiver crawled down her spine, her pink pouty lips parted in a small gasp, the cold had taken her by surprise. “My, winter is coming faster than I thought.” Quickly she scurried to her clothes line, her garments billowed in the harsh winds. Quickly she plucked each piece off, shoved them into her basket, chill licked at her hands as she pulled her clothing from the line. She got down to the last piece of clothing, Breaker’s shirt. She hadn’t seen him in months and it was the only thing that kept him close to her.

Her fingers felt almost numb as she fumbled with the pins to free the shirt. “Damn it,” McKinley cursed softly as the basket fell to the ground. She bent to collect the basket but the wind took the shirt with it and carried it towards the tree like. “Damn it all to hell,” the curse words almost sounded foreign from her plush lips as she set the basket down and chased after the shirt. “Come back,” she called after the shirt as if it would halt. She reached for the shirt that was now tangled in the limbs of a tree. She worked carefully and delicately to not tare the fabric. Once the shirt was untangled she clutched it to her chest and inhaled the faint scent of Breaker that still lingered. A dark figure engulfed her small frame, a sharp gasp parted her lips as she drew back away from the shadows.

"Who is there," she called out to the shadows that danced in the background of the sun that quickly fell.

The dark figure, an unlikely soul, belonged to that of one of the daft Paladin folks.

He opened his eyes and that set off a soft ambiance around him as he looked at the handsome woman. Though truth be told, Lorenor had preferred Men for the longest time now. Several life times, in fact. However, he found the curvy girl agreeable. Her long red and flowing hair reminded him of other such beauties he'd seen in his life. The question lingered in the air for a long moment as the glowing Paladin looked at the woman with a soft and kind expression in his eyes. "Your violin skills reminded me of something." Lorenor said calmly. "Forgive me, dear lady, my name is Lorenor. Was just camping out nearby when I heard the voice of an Angel." Lorenor felt warm near the small house and the girl living within the house despite the cold. He looked at the woman for a long moment. Staring deep into her eyes, unafraid. Unflinching.

Once, there had only been one woman who owned Lorenor, and that had been N'Jal.

But that life was long since over. Burned asunder by the fires of purification, The Holy Light's warmth replacing the cold void in his heart. For the longest time, The Undead adventurer served N'Jal as nothing more than a lackey with a fancy title. He was ready to give everything for N'Jal's cause. But betrayal was always a step behind The Old Paladin. He saw her holding a shirt in her hands, close to her heart. A man's shirt. And he wondered which Adventurer could leave such a mark on her. Lorenor felt the weight of ages hanging on his heart at that point as he looked away from the woman for a moment. He looked towards the general direction of the wind at that point. Then he looked back at the girl.

"If you wouldn't mind some company, I'd love to hear more of your singing again." Lorenor said truthfully. He was a daft fellow, something not quite right about the Undead Adventurer. As someone who had lived far too many lives more than he should have. He kept his arms folded across his chest as he looked at her calmly. "Your hair...it is a quite beautiful." The Old Paladin said calmly. He was being truthful. He wondered why a soul like hers, shining so bright, would be this deep in the wilderness alone. He was glad that he'd found her before any of the local dangers had.

"I'm a Paladin." Lorenor added. Then he walked towards her and paused a few paces away. "So what do you say to singing some more?" Lorenor asked. His face genuinely showed interest in the beautiful woman.

McKinley was taken back by the man, her large crystal blue orbs drank in the his appearance. Her heart pounded against her breast bone, no one ever wondered this way and if they did they didn't bother her. Most knew she was Breaker's beloved, the prized fighter had a name for himself that lent a hand to her safety. Though it had been many months since he was spotted at her cottage maybe it wore off. Even then the comfort of solitude was something she enjoyed. The bustling streets of a crowded city made her nervous more then the danger of being alone in a forest. "McKinley," her name lept from her lips before she could think about telling a complete stranger it. She gave a sharp nod to him having shared why he came to her cottage. His gaze caressed her form, long strokes that caused her to squirm under such an intense stare. "I used to be a prized violinist, well actually musician," her voice held some uncertainty to it as to why she would randomly share such an intimate detail with a stranger. McKinley shook her head which caused her fiery mane to sway back in forth, the curls bounced in the breeze. She could still faintly smell her honey suckle shampoo.

She watched as he glanced at the shirt that she quickly put behind her back. Silly of her to keep a man's shirt that she hadn't seen in months, six to be exact but she couldn't dare part with it. A sharp pain made its way into her chest made that resulted in her sucking in a sharp breath as the feeling of being left behind crept in constricting her air way. Her breathing became slightly shallow and forced as his gaze crept back to her face once more. She tried to form words but her tongue tripped over itself as he asked for her to sing more. Her mouth grew dry as she chewed on her lower lip. He seemed to leap from one discussion to the next. His manor seemed to show he didn't encounter people or maybe just a woman like her. She gifted him with a nervous smile as he complimented her hair. Wild most days, today it was just another day of having run a comb through it to tame it only briefly.

"Thank you," McKinley mumbled softly.

A puzzled look in cased her soft features as he reintroduced himself with a different name this time. "I thought you said your name was Lorenor?" She stepped back a little. This man made her somewhat feel uncertain but then at the same time she felt something for him. McKinley straightened up and walked towards the cottage before she glanced back. "If you try anything sir, I do have a dire wolf that will rip you to pieces." She warned him and assumed he followed in her foot steps. She placed the shirt in the basket she had left on the ground earlier. She opened the door and was nearly tackled by Nymeria.

"Easy girl," she soothed the large beast, the wolf's posture ridged as she sensed another person.

She ushered the stranger into her cottage that indeed seemed small on the outside but was fairly large on the inside. The cottage actually opened up inside to a large kitchenette that was connected to the a living area plus a hallway that hid away two rooms and a bathroom. "Make yourself at home," she murmured softly before going into one of the rooms down the hall. The calico dire wolf watched the stranger closely with an uncertain gaze. The warmth of the house wrapped itself around McKinley as she disguarded her cloak on the chair in her room. She put on a slightly sweater, the color of a navy blue brought the brightness out in her eyes. The sweater hung off on of her shoulders before she made her way out to the common area where the stranger sat.

She gathered a pitcher of freshly squeezed lemonade she had made and two glasses before sitting down across from the stranger. She poured a glass and offered it too him. "Before I sing I would like to know more about you, if you would please just share a few details about yourself."

Lorenor nodded at that point.

"Fair exchange." He said calmly, as he entered the cottage, it was quite spacious inside. He kept his eyes on the girl, McKinley she called herself. He looked around the house, it was quite well decorated and had a kitchenette. "I...was a follower of N'Jal for the longest time." Lorenor began. He felt a little uncomfortable recalling his troubled, violent past. But he didn't really mind talking about it. "One day, on a botched mission...I came across a man named Sei Orlouge." He thought of that day and what it meant. He'd loved Sei in many ways, but there had never been any time for the two of them...not the same as The Vampire Urei. "Sei...showed me the path to salvation." He recalled the reformation process he'd undergone during The Ixian Knight's training.

"Five years of Reformation burned away the taint of N'Jal from my very soul. I was freed." Lorenor thought about what freedom truly meant for him...who was Undead. "But during that time, Sei went missing. I never had a chance to properly thank him." He continued to speak, his voice had a thick Radasanth accent. Though at that particular moment it was surprisingly gentle, and quite sad at the same time. There was a weight in the man's heart. "I heard The Ixian Knights disbanded, and Sei's tablet was destroyed by a pretender." Lorenor said calmly, he didn't know the whole story. Didn't care but The Tablet of Destiny was not something that would have been easily shattered. His eyes went distant as he spoke.

Memories haunted his eyes at that point. He seemed distant, far away for a moment or two. "But yes, after Reformation...a Paladin's Order took me in. I have been a servant of The Light since. I had won my freedom." Lorenor said truthfully. His life, had been a life cursed by Undeath. He would always exist, always be there. "But yes, it's a lot to probably take in. But I have told you what I can for now. Further...I am what you Mortals call Undead." Lorenor said that last part with a certain emphasis. He wanted her to know the whole story, with her flaming red hair. He would not hide anything from her. "I was out here in the forest training for a long time when I heard your singing." Lorenor said. "It drew me here." He nodded at that point and waited to see what she would say.

McKinley listened intently as he shared his story with her. She nodded absentmindedly at some parts. She with drew the out stretch cup of lemonade as he shared he was immortal. Her mouth grew dry again as she took a sip of it herself. "So my singing drew you to my cottage as in you were curious or as in you hadn't eaten in a while and you wish to dine on my flesh?" Sometimes the things that would come from Kinley's mouth indeed would get her into trouble but she was slightly socially awkward and didn't think before she spoke. Setting down the glass she placed the pitcher back into her cooling unit before returning to her seat. Nymeria must have been able to feel her uncertainty because she came and laid her large head on McKinley's lap. Her hand ran along the dire wolf's skull in short calming strokes. It was something that made both of the two feel at ease since they had found one another.

"That is a very sad yet interesting story. I am sorry to hear all the hardship you have had to endure." Her apology was genuine and she was sad that someone had do endure all that he had. "I believe it is only fair that I tell you somethings about myself as well." Kinley sighed softly as she glanced down at Nymeria, her large brown eyes locked gaze. She planted a wet kiss on the wolf's nose before the large beast laid down on its hen feather bed next to the front door.

"I used to be a slave to one brutal Master, cruel in all things he did. I found a companion that tricked me into believing he was a kind soul only to find out he was an even bigger monster then my first Master. He took me from my first Master and killed everyone." Her eyes glazed over as she relived her past. "He planned horrible things for me, taking my maiden hood was one thing on his list. He had this sick picture or what love was and he thought I would grow to love him after time. Before he could do what he planned I escaped. Traveled many many years on the run from him and his brutes. The only solid thing in my life was my music until one day I found this lovely creature over here." She nodded towards the dire wolf that now was snoring lightly. "Like me the world had been unkind to her and so I took her in and she has been by my side. I Made a living by my music and soon I was requested to play all over the place."

She sighed softly as she brought her knees up to her chest and rested her chin on the top of her knees. "I met a man name Joshua Breaker," her eyes lit up at his name slightly. "He became my savior, My Master the one I ran from had found me and beat me to barely an inch of my life was left and he saved me. I killed Joel, my Master but not before I earned fatal wounds. Breaker kept me safe and nursed me back to health, I feel in love with him. He is a great warrior and his religion takes him into dangerous battles. It has been nearly half a year and no letter or sign of him."

A small tear slipped down her cheek as she quickly wiped it away. "Um, let me sing for you." She cleared her throat quickly changing the subject. She stood and hurried over to her second room the was almost her studio. "You'll have to come in here," she nodded toward the first door on the left before she disappeared in to it. The room was a soft pale green, slightly larger then her own room as it held a piano, violin, guitars and other different instruments. There was a bench that Breaker had put in so he could sit and watch here on the opposite side of her black stool. She picked up her large acoustic guitar. Strumming a few notes to test the tones. She tuned it slightly before she allowed her gaze to wander towards Paladin.

"Anything you wish to hear?"

"Cronen..." Lorenor whispered gently when she said the man's name. In his long life, he'd met many of Althanas's greatest Heroes and Villains. Cronen was among that lot. A sort of enigmatic man, with ties to The Thayne Codex. Just like he. Lorenor closed his eyes for a moment, the glow momentarily gone from his face...an eerie effect. He thought back to when he had crossed paths with Cronen several points in his life, but like many other memories the image of Joshua Cronen was also fading in his mind. He was trying to remember for...her sake. "You speak of Joshua Cronen." Lorenor nodded. "I met him a few times in my life...but he was different back then. And I've heard whispers." Lorenor rubbed his chin calmly. 'I've heard he was also touched by The Thaynehood." Lorenor considered all he had learned.

"I wish I could help you more in this endeavor. But I have not spoken to Joshua Cronen in some time." He continued his thought. "But I at least know of whom you speak." He added. "There are good men in this world, and I can say from my limited interaction with him, that he is a good man." Lorenor looked at the girl for a long moment as he spoke. "Oh...sing what ever speaks to you." He finally added. "I would very much like to hear you sing again." Lorenor focused at that point, and his body began to glow with the warmth of The Holy Light, on instinct. He was using the calming effects of his power on the girl, and her dire wolf. He was not there to cause them any harm.

In fact, he liked the red-head. Her demeanor and attitude were most agreeable, and they had a mutual ally. Lorenor tried really hard to remember the images of Joshua Cronen, but the images were distant in the vast depths of his void-like mind. Locked away to the end's of time. Lorenor felt a bit of frustration, but decided to focus on McKinley and her companion instead. "The Light...it has given me a purpose in a time when I needed one the most. I can relate to what you went through with Joshua Cronen. It was much the same for me with Reformation." Lorenor added. "Before then I was a broken, dark soul. With little interest in anything that was not obeying the will of N'Jal. I followed and obeyed without restraint. And one day they...betrayed me. The night I met Sei Orlouge. As I said earlier, I was a fool. Just another lackey with a fancy title. No different than the noble-folk of Radasanth itself."

Flashes crossed his mind at that point. He felt a little troubled at that point, but for entirely different reasons. He waited to hear what she would say and do next. His eyes went towards the windows of the comfortable cottage. His eyes narrowed and he simply listened to the sound of her breathing and the sound of the dire wolf's breathing. For the first time in a long time...Lorenor felt like that could have been home for him. Living in the shadow of another Hero. He didn't mind so much. Lorenor's was a life of servitude for this or that master. It was part of the curse of Undeath...

The sound of Breaker's last name sent a chill down her spine, her chest grew slightly tight. A hollow ache pulsated behind her breast bone. McKinley never knew loving someone could also be so painful. With each day that passed the hollow ache grew sharper and less bearable. "Yes he has been blessed to say the least." Her words faltered slightly as she she glanced up at Paladin. A small sigh parted her pink pouty lips before she cleared her throat and looked around at each instrument then down at her guitar. So many beautiful instruments, she plucked a few strings.

A soft smile came to her lips as he spoke of Joshua being one of the good guys. "He truly is a good person," she sighed again. The picture of Breaker clouded her mind, his strong jaw line, sharp cheeks, thick brown hair and beautiful blue eyes. Shaking the image from her thoughts she nodded plucking a few more cords together, letting her fingers run up and down the neck of the guitar. She was allowing her fingers to warm up and adjust to the instrument. It only took but a moment before her fingers were fluidly moving up and down the long oak neck of the instrument. A soft almost sorrow some melody sprang to life at the end of her fingertips. She still listened too him as she played softly allowing the melody to be background music until he finished. She let her tongue trace her lips as her fingers still worked up and down the frets of the guitar, her eyes slowly closed.

The melody filled the small studio easily bouncing off the wall. At first she started to hum along with it letting words slowly come to her. "Sometimes I wait up late at night, thoughts of you fill my mind. I long for the time you come home, that's why I leave a light in the window." McKinley's fingers danced up and down the neck of the guitar, beautifully in sync with one another. "When the pain of you absent gets to much, I close my eyes and think of your love. Hurry home for the ache I bare is causing me to loose too much air." Her voice was soft and sultry against the melody as the words flowed from her lips.

"I can't breathe when your away from me, there is so much you take from me. I am loosing my mind. Please hurry home, look for the light in the window." Her head slowly swaying with the melody as it slowly came to end. She placed her instrument back in it's case before turning back around. She looked at Paladin and gave him a nervous smile. "I am not much of a song writer so sorry the song was a bit shaky. I mostly just compose the music aspect not the lyrics.." Her words fell off as she caught her bottom lip in between her teeth nervously.

Lorenor smiled at that point. "McKinley...that was beautiful and you sang from the heart. That is what counts." Lorenor said truthfully. "You reminded me of someone I loved a long time ago. A man named Urei. He also vanished from this world. Never to be seen again." Lorenor said. There were some on Althanas who tried to hide the nature of their lovers, Lorenor did not feel shame or apprehension. "I hope Cronen comes back to you some day soon." Lorenor said carefully. He thought about how best it would be to help the girl before him. Lorenor rubbed his chin calmly. "You have a talent. Definitely you should nourish it. The world could use with more Bards, I would think." Lorenor considered the situation.

"We're in The Citadel, perhaps I can help you." He began. "If you want to do some training out in the woods, I can assist you with martial training." Lorenor said calmly. "I wan to help make you stronger so you can protect yourself while Cronen is away. The world is unkind and always conspires to swallow those like us. Who it thinks are weak." Lorenor had been standing the whole time. He looked calmly at The Dire Wolf, and then towards McKinley. "Weather conditioning is also good for training." Lorenor recalled the precepts of his Order. He opened his eyes again at that point. He was well armoured and armed with a claymore style sword. However, he would not bring harm to the mate of Joshua Cronen. Instead, he would train her in rudimentary martial skills. He also recently purchased a shield to fight with.

Lorenor extended his hand towards McKinley. "Come with me. Bring your friend too." Lorenor said quietly. He waited for her response.