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what if
I m not ready, he blurted.
Her brow furrowed. Well, we do not have to have little ones right away. She squeezed his
hand in what was clearly intended to be a gesture of reassurance.
Arthas suddenly dropped her hand and took a step backward. Her frown deepened in confusion.
Arthas? What s wrong?
Jaina we re too young, he said, speaking rapidly, his voice rising slightly. I m too young.
There s still I can t I m not ready.
She paled. You aren t I thought
Guilt racked him. She d asked him this, the night they became lovers. Are you ready for this?
she had whispered. I am if you are, he had replied, and he d meant it& . He really had thought
he d meant it& .
Arthas reached out and grabbed her hands, trying desperately to articulate the emotions racing
through him. I still have so much to learn. So much training to complete. And Father needs me.
Uther s got so much he needs to teach and Jaina, we ve always been friends. You ve always
understood me so well. Can t you understand me now? Can t we still be friends?
Her bloodless lips opened but no words came out at first. Her hands were limp in his. Almost
frantically he squeezed them.
Jaina, please. Please understand even if I don t.
Of course, Arthas. Her voice was a monotone. We ll always be friends, you and I.
Everything, from her posture to her face to her voice, bespoke her pain and her shock. But
Arthas clung instead to her words as a wave of relief, so profound it made his knees weak, swept
over him. It was all going to be just fine. It might upset her now, a little, but surely she d
understand soon. They knew each other. She d figure out that he was right, that it was too soon.
I mean this isn t forever, he said, feeling the need to explain. Just for now. You ve got
studying to do I m sure I ve been a distraction. Antonidas probably resents me.
She said nothing.
This is for the best. Maybe one day it ll be different and we can try again. It s not that I don t
that you
He pulled her into his arms and hugged her. She was stiff as stone for a moment, then he felt the
tension leave her and her arms went around him. They stood alone in the hall for a long time,
Arthas resting his cheek against her bright gold hair, the hair that, no doubt, their children would
indeed have been born with. Might still be born with.
I don t want to close the door, he said quietly. I just
It s all right, Arthas. I understand.
He stepped back, his hands on her shoulders, peering into her eyes. Do you?
She laughed slightly. Honestly? No. But it s all right. It will be eventually, anyway. I know
that.
Jaina, I just want to make sure this is right. For both of us.
I don t want to mess this up. I can t mess this up.
She nodded. She took a deep breath and steadied herself, giving him a smile& a real, if hurting,
smile. Come, Prince Arthas. You need to escort your friend to the ball.
Arthas somehow made it through the evening, and so did Jaina, although Terenas kept giving
him strange glances. He didn t want to tell his father, not yet. It was a strained and unhappy
night, and at one point during a pause in the dancing, Arthas looked out at the blanket of white
snow and the moon-silvered lake, and wondered why everything bad seemed to happen in
winter.
Lieutenant General Aedelas Blackmoore didn t look particularly happy to have this exclusive
audience with King Terenas and Prince Arthas. In fact, he looked like he desperately would like
to slink away unnoticed.
The years had not been kind to him, neither physically nor in the hand fate had dealt him. Arthas
recalled a handsome, rather dashing military commander who, while doubtless overfond of his
drink, at least seemed able to keep the ravages of it at bay. No longer. Blackmoore s hair was
streaked with gray, he had put on weight, and his eyes were bloodshot. He was, fortunately,
stone-cold sober. Had he showed up to this meeting intoxicated, Terenas, a firm believer in the
need for moderation in all things, would have refused to see him.
Blackmoore was here today because he had messed up. Badly. Somehow the man s prized
gladiator orc, Thrall, had escaped Durnholde in a fire. Blackmoore had tried to keep it quiet and
conduct his search for the orc personally and on a small scale, but a secret as large as a massive
green orc could not be contained forever. Once word had gotten out, rumors flew wildly, of
course it was a rival lord who had freed the orc, anxious to ensure winning in the rings; it was a
jealous mistress, hoping to embarrass him; it was a clever band of orcs unaffected by the strange
lethargy no, no, it was Orgrim Doomhammer himself; it was dragons, infiltrating disguised as
humans, who lit the place afire with only their breath.
Arthas had thought Thrall exciting to watch in combat, but he recalled that even then the thought
had crossed his mind whether it was wise to train and educate an orc. When information had
come that Thrall was on the loose, Terenas had summoned Blackmoore immediately for an
accounting.
It was bad enough that you thought it a good idea to train an orc to fight in gladiatorial combat,
Terenas began. But to train him in military strategy, to teach him to read, to write& I must ask,
Lieutenant General& what in the Light s name were you thinking?
Arthas smothered a grin as Aedelas Blackmoore seemed to physically diminish right in front of
his eyes.
You assured me that the funds and materials went directly into stepping up security, and that
your pet orc was securely guarded. Terenas continued, And yet somehow, he is out there
instead of safely inside Durnholde. How is that possible?
Blackmoore frowned and rallied somewhat. It is certainly unfortunate that Thrall escaped. I m
sure you understand how I must feel.
It was a hit on Blackmoore s part; Terenas still smarted from the fact that Doomhammer had
escaped from under his very nose. But it wasn t a particularly wise hit. Terenas frowned and
continued.
I hope this isn t part of some disturbing trend. The money is earned from the labor of the
people, Lieutenant General. It goes toward keeping them safe. Do I need to send along a
representative to ensure that the funds are properly distributed?
No! No, no, that won t be necessary. I will account for every penny.
Yes, said Terenas with deceptive mildness, you will.
When Blackmoore finally left, bowing obsequiously the whole way out, Terenas turned to his
son.
What are your thoughts on the situation? You saw Thrall in action.
Arthas nodded. He wasn t at all like I had imagined orcs to be. I mean& he was huge. And
fought fiercely. But it was obvious he was also intelligent. And trained.
Terenas stroked his beard, thinking. There are pockets of renegade orcs out there. Some who
might not have this lassitude that the ones we ve imprisoned have demonstrated. If Thrall were
to find them and teach them what he knows, it could be a very bad thing for us.
Arthas sat up straighter. This could be what he d been looking for. I ve been training hard with
Uther. And he had been. Unable to properly explain to others and to himself why he had
ended the relationship with Jaina, he d thrown himself into his training. He d fought for hours a
day until his body ached, attempting to sufficiently exhaust himself so that he could get her face
out of his mind.
It had been what he wanted, hadn t it? She d taken it well. So why was it he who lay awake at
night, missing her warmth and presence with a pain that bordered on agony? He had even
embraced hitherto despised hours spent in still, silent meditation in an effort to distract himself.
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