Elariel couldn't help but be distracted by Tae'loren. She watched as he perused the volumes casually with a reminiscent smile. After he returned the books his eyes fell on her. His gaze made her feel warm, and she had to redouble her attempts at meditation. As he watched her she wondered what he was thinking, what he was looking for. When he resettled in front of her, purposefully taking it slowly and making his intentions clear, she was not surprised. It must have been a long day for him also, and it made sense that he would need his rest. As his lids fell shut she drew herself out of her meditation somewhat. Without his inquisitive gaze she was able to sate her own curiosity. She took her time to look over his form. He was lean and muscular, every part of him strong. His face was exquisite also; his cheekbones defined perfectly, his features both masculine yet graceful. Elariel was surprised though, as he settled into his own meditation she could tell that he was truly relaxing. More so than she had herself. His closed eyes communicated a sense of comfort that neither of them should have felt in that situation and his muscles were relaxed. Calm permeated from him like scent from a moonflower.<br/><br/>As Tae'loren's chest rose and fell with the rhythmic breathing of his relaxation, Elariel found that she was also able to release some of her own tension. Their discussion with Roe'nor and Neras had been infuriating, but now she'd had some time to think about it she could understand it to an extent. Nevertheless, she knew it would be an uphill struggle to get everyone to agree on a course of action that evening. With a heavy sigh and a sense of resignation, Elariel returned to her semi-aware meditative state. Nothing but the passing of time would tell the outcome of her situation, and worrying about it would serve no good.<br/><br/>~*~<br/><br/>The dying rays of daylight pierced through the shuttered windows rudely. The bright beams were hot on Elariel's robes and she found herself growing more aware in their slow demise. With conscious effort, she begun to wriggle and stretch her extremities. Her fingers, toes, hands, ankles... Everything begun to tingle as she sent her consciousness rolling back into her body. Her eyes opened fully to the sight of her room lit prettily by the last rays of day, the light shooting across the room in diagonal beams that lit up the dust motes dancing through the seemingly still air.<br/><br/>"Tae'loren?" Elariel said softly, sure to keep her volume low and calm. She waited for him to rouse and then smiled at him. "We will have to meet my colleagues soon, but I wanted to talk to you first."<br/><br/>When her captive was more conscious she stretched out her limbs, legs lengthening in front of her and arms stretching up and then behind her back. She enjoyed meditating, but she enjoyed the stretches afterwards even more. It was invigorating to wake up her mind and her muscles, and she was only sad that she could not enjoy it more thoroughly.<br/><br/>"As you are aware, Roe'nor and Neras want you dead. They are blindsided by the sacking of Silvermoon. We are struggling in our mission here. Up until today no one had ever gotten so far into Illidan's complex... and that is where we need to go if we are to succeed. We need someone like you to guide us..." Elariel trailed off and looked at the shuttered window. She knew that the others would be returning from the hunt at any moment, and she wanted to arrive before they were summoned. "I don't know what your guiding purpose was at the Temple, but I do know that the others will not release you. They are clearly concerned that you know of our presence; if you tell Illidan or his minions then we will have no chance at success. If you agree to help us they may see fit to let you live."<br/><br/>Elariel turned back to the Night Elf and met his gaze. She hoped that he could see that she didn't want her colleagues to kill him. Unfortunately it wasn't that simple.<br/><br/>"If you tell me that you will agree to aid us to the best of your abilities, I will personally vouch for you at the meeting. I will suggest that we use you as a guide, and with any luck the others will agree to withhold their more sinister magic. What say you?"<div class="messageTextEndMarker"> </div>