A Memory.

It was nearing midnight when they called. Which was odd not for the timing, but the fact that they never called. Not on her.

These secret sundown parades were meant for the older, wiser and more capable students. It was also thought to be an act of rebellion, so the lack of serenity which she was often known for immediately disqualified her from every considered invitation.

Everybody within this small selective circle knew to skip her window, and they always did. So much so that when Jenny first heard the hushed voice creep through the silence of her room, she pulled the covers over her face and feared it to be a ghost of sorts.

"Are you awake yet, Jen?" It whispered again, slightly louder this time and just distinct enough for her to place the owner of the voice.

Before a response even came to her mind, Hanrik peaked his head into the cleft window and gave her an impatient look. There was a certain sense of anticipation and nerves about him which Jenny rarely saw in her older and only friend. So the little girl could not do much else but jump from her bed and rush through the window in suspense.

It was hardly astonishing to find that Jenny was one of the youngest present, her peers all towered above her seven year old self, and even though Hanrik was only a few years older he didn't obtrude due to his height. But she did, and many mocked for her to go back to her room.

Hanrik protectively deflected any sneers directed toward her in his usual witty manner and even deliberately took her hand after a comment made about her pace.

Though Jenny remained persistent during the stroll, when they reached the outskirts of Dalaran and the city's deafening descend revealed to be mere inches away, she started to hysterically reconsider their suggestions of a supposed bedtime.

She watched from a secluded distance as the students, including Hanrik, all eagerly rushed to place their toes to the edge- too much to the edge. And they started taking turns. One after the other they muttered the same spell, performed mimicked hand gestures and created frozen droplets in the night sky. They challenged eachother in whom could keep the icicles afloat the longest, and whenever the ice melted and began drizzling down in varies colours it was met with noiseless applaud and gasps of awe.

Even Jenny, in her rippled nightgown and bedraggled mane of golden curls could not deny the beauty they all saw in the naturalistic act. But she knew it was wrong and somewhere in her muddled mind she may even have recalled rules against this sort of behaviour. She felt propelled to safe them from possible penalties.

"S-stop."

She did not speak loud but firmly, and her improbable voice immediately earned her the attention of two older boys and a dark haired girl with sharp ears. Unfortunate to Jenny, they also happened to be her regular oppressors- the ones regretfully always present to witness her failings in magic related tasks. When they saw her so withdrawn, there was no delay on their part and when they approached her, they were relentless. Their taunts overlapped, but Jenny heard every single claim distinctively.

Backing away and cupping her hands over her ears didn't even muffle them, and much to her dismay everyone else seemed oblivious.. or uncaring of the ridicule taking place behind them. But their words didn't really affect her. It was the honesty they held, the truth they were speaking which absolutely deranged her. She was behind in her class, failing every test and assignment and no matter the resolution she possessed, magic always refused her. There was no reason for her to tarry here.

When the girl budged foward to shove Jenny's feeble frame a couple steps back, she decided it fit to swiftly turn and sprint away.

While she ran back to her room Hanrik appeared at her heels and when he caught up with her, it took only a swift hand on her shoulder to yank her to a sharp pause. Long since had the brunette and blue eyed boy assumed a brother figure in her life, and right then he triumph in the role by wiping the moisture from her cheeks with his open palms before instantaneously pulling her toward his chest. And in her friend's guarded embrace Jenny made no attempt in suppressing her wailing and unruly sobs.

"What did they say, Jenny? Were they mocking you again?- You know they aren't even allowed to pry in the progress of other students. And they aren't even allowed out here- doing this. You know what? We'll tell on them. They're foolish and.. simply bullies. You won't mind a word they say, you hear me?"

Although Hanrik stammered in his consolation, Jenny knew he meant well. He was the only one whom ever did. She sniffed and swallowed back a cry and irritably broke away from the hug. She studied him intently for a second and thus came the sudden realization that she truly was unbefitting of this boy's friendship- even at their age, Jenny could tell that he was her opposite in every sense. Sharp, daring, righteous.. talented.

Her only hereafter would be as a rock anchoring him down, as he had been since they started being friends, cast out from the mass because of the company he kept. This was not her place after all and these were not her range of people. At that moment she already knew that her departure from the Kirin Tor was fated. And she preferred it to be so, she didn't want to be here.. even if it meant deserting her friend.