Illidan's Private Journal - The Weight of Steel
(Journal fragment, penned in Illidan's hand.)
Athelan called her to the test today. No warning, no time to prepare. One moment she was speaking softly to a novice, her hands steady as she healed. The next, she was ordered into the wilds with only what she could carry.
She did not flinch. She straightened her spine and followed him.
And I…
I gave her a dagger. Slipped it into her satchel when no one was watching. Why? She has bow and wit enough. Athelan meant for her to rely on her own hands, not gifts from another.
But still, I placed the steel there.
Perhaps because I wanted her safe. Perhaps because I wanted her to know that someone saw her courage, and would not leave her bare.
It unsettles me. I have broken rules before, but this felt different. Not defiance. Not hunger. Something else.
The weight of steel is small. But tonight I cannot forget the way her eyes found mine when she realized what I had done.