of Sea and Stars

"Watcha lookin at Butha?" The heavily scarred female troll asked, placing one hand on her son's shoulder, while resting the other on her rounded pregnant belly.

"My star." The future shadowmaster answered, as he diverted his attention from the early morning sky to his doting mother.

"Ahh..I see it." She said, holding back the tears welling in her eyes. "Don't you ever forget what your stars mean, and always be a good troll, Butha."

"Okies mumma." Butha answered nonchalantly, content to stare off into the sky. Ever since his father's death, six months earlier, he had come to expect a certain level of mothering that was unique amongst his peers. Then, as they had done nearly every morning since that death, the small broken family sat on Durotar's red clay beach and watched the night begin to recede to the morning.

"There's goes Pup-pup." Butha murmured under his breath, watching the dawn's light drown-out the light from the evening's stars.

"Oh, my little Butha, just because you can't see him, does not mean that he is not there." His mother jumped in. "Remember, when you sneaking them raptor eggs for Zjolnir? The momma raptors may not have seen you, but you were there, stealin their eggs! Or, remember when you sneakin' the other' little trolls' elf skulls, so you could have the most skulls?"

"Ya, of course I remember!" Butha answered. "That was fun!"

"It was and is the samething with Pup-pup." She revealed. "He's there, even if you can't see him, and he was..."

"What...you..." The young troll's eyes light-up with a contagious mixture of excitement and wonderment, as he interrupted his mother beating her to her point. "You mean Pup-pup was a sneak like me?!"

Smiling wide, she answered: "You mean you are a sneak like he was, and yes, he was." Continuing, she sat down and began to disrobe on the beach, readying for their morning swim. "And you're not a sneak...yet."

Seeing his mother getting ready, Buthaleirus peeled off his shirt and shook lose his sandals. "G-o-i-n s-w-i-i-i-i-i-m-m-i-n-n!" Butha half-said and half-sung, as he danced out of his remaining clothes. His energies jumping seamlessly from one conversation to the next. Although morning swims were nearly a daily routine, the joy and excitement, the one-day assassin expressed was genuine.

"Ya, but this time, you wait here, lil' B." She said, as she pulled on a unused tunic, The tunic, which was a stark ivory color, contrasted sharply with the splashes of color woven into it, depicting scenes of her everyday life. Straightening the garment neatly, she continued. "I haven't told you before, because the spirits were uncertain of your future, lil' B, but the elders now sayin you got the gift of shadow like Pup-pup." She said, as she manipulated an elven collarbone, pinning her bright orange hair high over her head. "Lil' B, you'll be meeting a good troll. He is called Shentul, and he will teach you like he taught your father."

"What?" Her once-singing, now confused son asked, focusing on the obvious present disappointment, rather inquiring further about more gleeful ideas. "I can't go swimming?"

"Not this morning." Her voice breaking a bit, as if she was biting back tears. "I need to do this swim alone, but I did bring something for you to play with while I'm gone."

"Oh?" His disappointment abated for a moment, as he pondered the idea of a new toy.

"This." She said, pulling forth a yet unknown object carefully wrapped in fine folded leathers. Placing one hand on Butha's shoulder, she urged him to sit. She then kneeled, leveling her eyes with his. "You can have this, only if you promise, not to open it till you can't see me." She demanded, knowing that will ensure his place on the beach.

The disappointment on Butha's face morphed to what would become his trademark grin, signifying a silent, excited agreement. "Okies! I promise."

Matching her son's grin with her own, she smiled warmly, tasseled the troll's mohawk and gave him a long hug. "Kay, I goin son. Remember, what we've talked about." She said, backing into the Great Sea and pointing to unseen Stars. With waves crashing at her back, she touched her round belly and said, "We''ll be watchin you Buthaleirus." Then, turning to the open water, she swam.