The Night After

Author: Kayaara

The night was cold, and the streets were calm in Stormwind. The dimly lit roads were almost silent, were it not for the rustle of the trees made by the gentle breeze, and the quiet footsteps of Lexa Carabell.

Her feet dragged behind her, hair a mess sticking up in all places and her eyes showed just how tired she really was. They lost the glow they once held, bags a contrast to her pale face. To top off the look, two curled horns sat on top of her forehead. The dark of the night was helpful for hiding from guards – she didn’t want to think about getting caught as she was – all she wanted to do now was go home.

Turning out from the Trade District into the canals, she almost bumped right into a patrolling guard. With wide eyes, she swerved around the guard, and ran down the path, all the way until she was across the bridge leading to the Cathedral District. She didn’t dare to turn around; afraid the guard noticed her head, and she was so close now. Only a few more steps, just a few more, and she could finally collapse.

She almost collided with the door in her rush. Twisting the knob didn’t help much, leaving her to knock on the door and hope she wasn’t going to get bombarded with questions at such a late hour. Of course, she merely had wishful thinking, as when Tarylle opened the door, dressed in her nightgown, clearly just woken up, her expression was a mixture of confusion, anger and betrayal.

Grabbing Lexa by the arm, she pulled the girl inside, shutting the door behind her and locking it back up. Lexa gripped onto the ends of her shirt nervously, waiting for her mother to start talking.

“You go missing for weeks on end, and come home looking like,” she gestured to the horns poking out of her head, “this. What in the Light have you even been doing? Disappointed is the least I feel right now, Lexa.” She walked straight past the girl, bumping into her and causing her to almost lose her balance. “And what were you thinking even walking the streets like that? Did anyone see you? I’m so embarrassed!”

Lexa averted her eyes, nervously looking down at the floor, then at the wall, in search of a way to escape her mother’s words. “I—I don’t –“

“Can you not even explain yourself this time, girl? Come on, speak to me!” Tarylle turned around and gripped Lexa’s arm, pulling her close, causing the girl to flinch and edge away. Noticing her discomfort, Tarylle at least had the decency to loosen the grip, not completely letting go however. “Sit down, come on.”

Tarylle sat herself down on the small couch in the living room, Lexa having no choice but to follow her, and once she sat down next to her mother, the hand around her arm let go.

“Where have you been?” Tarylle asked, her tone softened now, and Lexa would have actually thought she sounded concerned.

Lexa could feel her eyes begin to water, tears prickling at the edges and she tried so hard to keep it in, to at least wait until she was alone in her room where she could cry freely with no one to see her. She hated crying normally, but to cry in front of her mother, who seemed so angry, who just wanted to interrogate her, well that was the worst. “Mother, please. Please.” She basically whimpered, hands reaching up to touch her horns. They were rough, and surprisingly blunt at the end. From where they started, they were a dull beige, transitioning to a light grey with a green ring near the tip. Tarylle watched her slowly touch the horns, clicking her tongue against the top of her mouth.

After a few, long moments of silence in the dark room, Tarylle stood up. “Go to bed.” She finally said, it coming out like an order, even though that’s all that Lexa wanted since she came back from her trip. She made her way up the stairs, with each step they creaked, echoing through the house. Lexa waited until she was in her room before standing up, and following after, and into her own bedroom.

Just to be sure, she locked the door behind her. She turned towards her bed, sitting on the edge, and from the bedside table, she picked up a pack of matches, lighting one up and subsequently lighting the lantern set beside her bed up. It cast a small glow to her room, the light just reaching the end of her bed and the door, everything else still hidden in the dark. Picking up the lantern, she set it down on top of her desk situated opposite the bed.

It was just how she left it before, luckily. Books and pens and ink were still messily scattered across the top, the mirror replicating every single detail. She slowly tidied everything back to its rightful place; the books hidden under the desk, and the pens and ink set to one side, leaving an empty space in front of the mirror. Finally, she looked straight forward, directly into tired eyes.

It was the first time she managed to get a proper look of herself in weeks. The girl she once was is long gone; once upon a time she would look into the mirror with a playful smile and a sparkle in her eyes – beautiful, rouged cheeks and long, shiny hair. Now as she looked at her reflection, she was met with not even a smile. She brought her fingers up to her face, touching her cheeks. Then she touched the corner of her lips, pushing them up ever so slightly in the form of a smile. Quickly she removed her hands, lips falling back to their neutral position as easily as when she’d made herself smile.

Her eyes had long lost the sparkle, now they were merely two dull orbs illuminated by the burning lantern. She would have once heard them described as sweet chocolate, framed with a perfect smile, but when she looked at them now in the dimly lit room, all she could think of was rotting bark. And when her eyes ventured further up… She could hardly stand to see the permanent reminder of her mistakes, latched into her head like a bad dream you can never forget.

She looked away abruptly from the mirror, and walked over towards her wardrobe. Inside was a simple white night gown, which she took out, and placed down on the bed. She took her clothes off, leaving them strewn about the floor, and put the gown on, letting it fall into place. It was surprisingly baggy on her, seeing as she’d owned it for years now. Blowing the lantern out, she threw herself backwards onto the bed, kicking the blanket out from underneath her and then wrapping it tightly around herself.

For now, she was allowed to give into her sleepy thoughts, eyes fluttering shut, and in a few minutes, Lexa Carabell fell asleep, the most peaceful sleeps she’s had in a long while.