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Malik walked into the kitchen and sat down.

"She's pretty banged up. once she's through soaking, I'd like you to take a look at her. she was covered in grime and who know's what, and I'd hate to risk any of her minor cuts or the like to get infected. and the Oracle apparently has passed on as humans do."

though a look at Zykariel.

"So, it seems you talked to Khavier. Have an enjoyable conversation? learn anything interesting?"

Of course you put two and two together. Khavier's attitude obviously spoke that he knew about Malikhai before he saw him, and the only person that would openly talk about Malikhai around him was of course his friend. But khavier might have said something to bait the boy that would be interesting news for him.

Zykariel came back with the asked for ingredients and popped up onto the stool as well. He glanced at Malik and shrugged, "Just that Daddy's mad at him and it was a bad surprise that he came." He couldn't tell Khaiver's secret after he had promised. "Oh and he said Khai and I were good explorers." That was exciting in itself, wasn't it?

Zahara nodded and ruffled Malikhai's hair. "I think a cookie and a hug and kiss from you would be just the thing Malikhai." Her gaze moved over to Malik and she wasn't sure she wanted Zykariel to answer that question but she stayed silent. "I'll do that Malik but for now why don't you go spend time with her? I know you missed her a lot and I have Malikhai entertained. I'm sure seh'd probably appreciate some wine and her husband." Giving him a wink she turned back to measuring ingredients out and handing things to children to dump into bowls.

"We are good explorers." Giving a smile at that, though listening lightly. Seemed Zykariel had gotten into a little bit of torouble with Sevilin's little friend that was here. A look to Malik though as he adressed the children. "Alright daddy, I'll remember."

A look over at the door as it was knocked on, giving a slight smile at the sound of Malik's voice, that was certinally a voice she missed. "I'm clean at the very least and that makes ten times difference in my book. You can come in you know...you have seen it all before." And it was probably best that she did have someone around her, seeing as she was thinking too hard.

"Hardly...besides, modesty is overrated in most cases. I'm happy to soak for as long as I please, and to have you around at the same time...there's no room for modesty in there." Giving a look up to him as he came to sit near her, giving him a lazy blink. Yup was good to lay around knowing you didn't have anywhere to go. "And look you brought the wine, how lovely." Because yes she sure could use a glass...or a bottle. Easily taking her own glass, draining it about halfway in first go. "First anniversery of what? We've had several of several kinds now." Though she went quiet a moment as he mentioned being worried about her. It was nice to know, wasn't it? "I held up pretty well until the end...now I'm just...I don't know, I guess I'm just decompressing so to speak..." Just didn't feel like herself too much right now. "By the way...in the pile of mess there on the floor that's supposed to be my clothes and equipment, you'll find your final map. And I hope never to retrace those routes again personally..." Taking a momen to rub at her ears with her free hand, this being the first time they weren't pinned back since she left.

Aella, her head in her crossed arms, alying on the bed, cryied softly. Meilikki's body had been cleaning up, her hands clapes atop her stomach. She looked pale and thin, unable too keep much weight on her frame in the last few months she had been alive.

Aella was unaware of the visit that her adopted mother had taken to the temple in Deep Water, did not know of her last wish she had bestoyed on Kimmuriel. Either way, she could only speculate over who killed her, but believed it was a good speculation.

Who would she relay on now? Those that she looked to slipped away from her. She sighed, sniffed, and patted one of Deidrichs heads. The dog would not leave Meilikki's side until she was burried.

Tarathiel sat in a chair, not really understanding what was going on. He had meet several people who 'died', but Meilikki's death was so sudden and violent. He could not believe his rational mind's acceptance of these events. How could she fall?

Why?

He looked into the mirror accross the hall, he could picture himself smiling on her lap, having his hair brushed and braided. He could remember the smell of the soup that she would make for him to eat, the smell of the alchemicial ingrediants playing off her fair features. The welcoming grasp of her arms...

The child watched the darkness swell around the image, the dimly light room brightening with the return of the glow moss outside. He watched the image phase into and out of focus. His skin semed to be growing black, his hair white. The strangest yet, his eyes turned purple. He relized then that someone was playing a trick on him.

"Hello Kidlet." Orko said in his ever bemused Eastern-European accent. "I guess you are feeling a great deal of grief." He sat next to the child-elf, and watched his illusion in the mirror. "He is the one that killed her."

Tarathiel looked up at Orko, then back at the image. "A drow child?"

"In a manner of speaking, Yes. When I last spoke to him, on the eve of your re-birth, he was still but a child playing games with the universe. Now, it seems that his time away from here has matured his senses."

"You are speaking as though Meilikki's death was---" He couldn't find the words to complete his fragile sentance.

"Ordained by a god." Orko concluded. "Though, I see no reason for him to return here, unless he was not longer a diety."

"What?" Tarathiel asked rather eagerly. Either out of hatred or desire to bury his own inner feelings in something less than the desirable grief.

"I never believed that the strict regulations on dieties would suit my old master. He was too rebellious to ever give into such things. He probably got frustraited with his stay there rather quickly... For in life, he was very active in the re-shaping of the world." Orko spoke with the calm air of a scholar addressing subjects which scholarly thought should wait a few decades to address. The re-shaping was evidently what destroyed Tarathiel's first childhood and created the second.

"He gave up being a god, came back here, and murdered Meilikki." Tarathiel figited. It was obsurd for that line of events.

"It is true that I am merely speculating his actions; I have not spoken with him or his since before the Times of Trouble ((period of magical prohibition)), but given his personality before I would not be surprised if he handed off the godly powers to return to a more active life-style. He probably resented the ability to sleep so soundly in the heavens."

"You arn't making any sense."

"Ahh, but you do not know him as I do. Peace has always been his mortal nemisis. Even the Abyss is peaceful for a diety. He would resent that peace very much so."

"Lloth was killed, so could he."

"Lloth's death was orcastriated by Kimmuriel by pressuring the Earth Mother into sacrificing herself. He had help to do that, but his goal was to force the Earth Mother to bring about the death of Lloth."

"That is vile."

"Lloth did not think so. She thought it was clever. The idea of having the Earth Mother destroyed probably outweighed the desire to stay alive."

"How can you talk about the gods as though they are people."

"Most gods were at one point, people."

"Most?"

"That is a complicated history of events and rumors. You would be better off doing the research and coming to your own conclusions about which gods are real, and which are false."

"But... Meilikki..."

"She had the forsight gift for a long long time. I thoroughly believe she knew that Kimmuriel was to be her bane since the time she first used her perminisions."

"But..."

"She loved the man she knew was going to kill her. This is perhaps, an irony of her gift. To love that which makes her dreams more so, and less so every day."

"I..."

"You are confused by how to feel towards Kimmuriel. He ressurected you after murdering you. He loved one of your mothers, and she loved him, yet he killed her in spite of that. The Captain brought order to this land where injustice prevailed, yet he undermines it for the very joy of doing so. He protects one monarch, or destroys him with little thought at all. The whole of this kingdom, and more than one point, rested on the tip of his sword. How should you feel about such events? Can you even comprehend them?"

"No..."

"Then stop sulking here in the dark. Tearful pity for the deceased will not change the fact you are alive and well, while she is not."

"But..."

"There is no room for indicision on this matter. If you are not willing to accept the fact that she is dead, you will be unable to grow."

"But..."

"Within your brain, is a processed image of Meilikki. She is there, and through this sub cognitive influence can live with you for the remainder of your elfish life."

That drew a pause from the child. He was now too confused to know if he was awake or sleeping at that moment. Then... "Oh." As though the last piece of a puzzle shifted into place.

"You are making excelent progress with your grief. When I first cast the illusion upon your mirror, you would crawl under your bed and shed your mortal coil to relieve your own anxiety. Now, after listening to the inane babbling of a middle-aged man, you can bring your senses into a local perspective of life and death."

"No... I think I still want to die." Tarathiel replied with a shaky voice.

"On the contrary, being able to voice your emotions so clearly means that you are in better tune with your own spiritual sense of self. Consider yourself to be honourably feeling for the loss of Meilikki instead of selfishly daunting yourself on something you have no control over."

Tarathiel had to nod. He could not think of a better response. He was too tired from the passing, not to mention this converstion to make much of a cognitive effort to keep up with the wizard.

"Go take a little rest. Soon, your heart will be full of the eagerness to live again, with new purpose in the memory of what you have lost."

Tarathiel walked over to Cedric's bed, and plomped down on it, and fell quietly to sleep.

Orko walked over to the door, and let the pigmi-Lavi enter the room. "Dragon." He greeted as he walked out of the room. Lavi curled up next to Tarathiel and shut his eyes, though he didn't sleep.

Aella's shoulder shook, a shuddering breath racked at her lungs.

"Cedric..." She whipped tears from her eyes. "I...I don't know what to do anymore." Tear spilled over her cheeks, making the whiping kind of reduntant. She stopped bothering.

"Meilikki is...was...and now she's..." She couldn't really finish that sentence. She felt silly for crying so much.