The loud knock was followed by the sound of his door being thrown open. "Old Troll, ya in there?"
Derrial chuckled under his breath, and then shouted, "Come on in Old Bull, no need ta break da door down, I'm in da garden"
Once the initial awkwardness of Bookh's change had sunk in, the two had fallen back into their close camaraderie, even to the use of their nicknames for each other. If they were in public, folks looked at them rather oddly when Derrial called an attractive female Troll "Old Bull" but the glint in her eye precluded any questions.
There was such a glint in her eye now. Derrial closed his mouth on the comment he had been about to make about where he should hide the bodies. His survival skills were intact, and he knew better than to irritate Bookh further with that look on her face. He put down the garden tools he had been working with and moved to grab a flagon of Darkmoon Special Reserve off the shelf as she flopped down in her favorite chair. He poured a couple of glasses, handed her one, and blinked as she tossed it down without flinching.
Sipping the potent brew carefully, he looked at Bookh. "Either dat was not da Special Reserve dey sold me, or sumptin' not so comfy is on ya mind."
She held out her glass wordlessly for him to refill it, and drank that one in a single gulp as well. Setting the glass down on the worktable with a sigh, she turned to Derrial and met his curious gaze.
"Do ya remember me talkin about my old flame Bow?" Bookh's face showed a mixture of anger, upset and something else.
Derrial answered slowly, "Uh… Ya?"
"I ran inta her today in Orgrimmar." Bookh paused, a look of distress creasing her brow.
"Well, it is no uncommon thing for two ladies or two guys ta truly love each other. If ya feel sumptin' for her, don't be denying it ta yerself."
Bookh snorted. "Certainly not, Old Troll. Dat part of our relationship died long ago. But what I found out today was…so had she."
Derrial squinted in confusion. "I think I missed a few words dere."
"She was killed early in the Northrend campaign, and she's a 'death knight' now." Bookh enunciated the words with distaste, almost making a curse out of them. Looking at the confused look on Derrial's face, Bookh tried to explain.
"I know as a priest yer comfortable with both shadow and light, but da death knight is a perversion of life, not its opposite. Life and its cycles are sacred to da Earth Mother, da Night Elves' Elune and even as I've begun to learn about da Loa of da Trolls, dere is a passing beyond, yet still a connection to da cycle. Da death knight bypasses all dat - steps outside of da cycles of life, death and rebirth, as it were - and to a druid it's an….abomination!" Bookh's words grew more and more emphatic as she continued to speak, and the fierce look on her face made Derrial want to take a step backwards.
"Da death knights were created by, and fought on da side of Arthas." Bookh shuddered slightly in memory of the prolonged fighting in Icecrown Citadel. "Dere were a faction of them dat broke away, however, and fought against da Lich King, and Bow was one of dem. But dat still doesn't change…" Bookh's voice broke off and her head lowered for a moment. When she raised her head, her eyes were shiny with unshed tears.
"We were children together," she said brokenly. "We grew up in Bloodhoof, played on da plains of Mulgore. Fel, she was my first case of puppy love. And now…she's a THING!" Bookh bowed her head again, and her tears began to flow.
Derrial's eyes widened in surprise. He'd never seen Bookh cry before or look so fragile. Without thinking about it, he went to her and gently pulled her into a hug, softly stroking her head and whispering soothing sounds.
Bookh gave a long shuddering sigh as she calmed, relaxing comfortably into his arms. After a time, she looked up at him, face still wet from her tears.
Derrial reached to wipe her tears away, hesitated, and then completed his action.
"So, Old Troll, where ya been hidin' dis sensitive side of yers?" she said, with a faint smile.
"Um… Well, I …" He smiled at his own fumbling words as her smile brightened slightly. "Oh, it's always been dere. It just takes a special lady ta bring it out."
She looked at him, the look on her face fleeting from surprise to pondering to smiling. Emboldened by her smile, Derrial leaned in and gave her a tender kiss.
"Well, dis is certainly a new development," she murmured.
"Shut up, Old Bull," Derrial whispered and then kissed her again.
