Darius looked at Silvara.

"If you can give me peace from 20  years of nightmares and pain, you will have given me more than I ever could dream of," Darius replied. "I will tell you whatever you want to know. I don't want to be hurt by it anymore."

 The elf maiden had only made it about halfway to her tower, having lingered in the outside air, enjoying the sunshine and breezes. She was surprised at being summoned again by Silvara so soon after leaving the Fire Mage's tower, but she accepted it and quickly returned. After being let it, she was directed to the study. Since she had lived in Silvara's tower at one time, Arienne knew where to go and quietly climbed the stairs, knocking gently on the door. She poked her silvery head inside and saw Darius and Silvara seated within. The Enchantress offered them both a curious smile and looked at Silvara. "Did I forget something?" she asked pleasantly.

 With a still slightly puzzled frown, Arienne nodded and sat on the couch looking from one to the other. "I am by no means an expert, Silvara," she felt that she had to mention that up front. "I can make guesses, but if the problem is deeply rooted, I am not qualified to do more than offer guidance." She eased back on the couch and crossed her slender legs beneath her dark robes. Arienne turned her curious blue eyes to Darius and then crossed her arms over her chest in a relaxed posture, listening intently.

Darius felt a little uneasy as the two women turned their attention to him. He asked for a glass of water, which Silvara soon produced for him.

"I never knew my parents," Darius said in starting his story. "The brothers at Mercy Orphanage told me that I was dropped off there when I was just a couple of months old. The orphanage was the only home I really knew, though I never really liked it. I wasn't a big kid so all the other kids would make fun of me. Whether it was the hand-me-down clothes I wore to my size or just downright hatred, they enjoyed taunting me. I grew up pretty much by myself, hating my parents for abandoning me, hating the other kids for making fun of me, and  hating myself for what I wasn't. This one day, I stumbled upon one of the brothers practicing his magic. I heard him mumble these words and I saw him create a fire in the fireplace. He heard me gasp at this wondrous sight and he asked me what I had seen. I lied and said I had seen nothing, for which he gave me several lashes for being someplace I wasn't supposed to be. I was also locked in a room for the night so that I could properly reflect on what I  had done. Some of the kids snuck down to the room and teased me unmercifully for much of the evening. I remembered getting upset at the whole situation and in anger, I repeated the words that I had heard the brother say to create fire. Suddenly the orphanage was on fire...it was sheer bedlam as brothers and children alike tried to make it outside. Nobody bothered to unlock the door to my locked room. Soon the flames were on me, burning the flesh on my face. I summoned all the energy I had and ran at the door. Luckily, it gave way and I was freed from the fiery prison I was in. I stumbled outside to where the few that had made it let me know what they thought of my 'new' face. Their name-calling rang in my ears as I ran as far away as I could. I found out that no matter where I went, nobody wanted to be seen near me. So I painted my face to hide the scars."

Darius looked at Silvara and remembered the words she had spoken to him earlier. He took the water and poured it on his face. The facepaint started to run and Darius used a sleeve of his robes to wipe his face clean.

"This is the real me," he said quietly, automatically waiting for the reaction he usually got. "These are the scars, the daily reminder of where I came from. They're the chains that keep me bound to the past."

 

Arienne carefully kept her porcelain features composed in an expression of sympathy and understanding as Darius told his sad tale. At the end, when he exposed the face beneath the paint, her crystalline blue eyes widened slightly, but she didn’t gasp or utter any sound of disgust. The scars were bad, she had to admit, but she had seen worse in her days here in Elmshade. Her voice was calm and warm as she spoke to him, leaning forward slightly on the couch. "Your story is quite sad, Darius, and further proof to me of the possible cruelty of human children. Thank you for sharing it with us, though I can see from the pain in your eyes that it was not an easy tale to tell. As for the scars on your face...I suspect you carry emotional scars that run far deeper. But I feel that I should tell you that your face is not as badly damaged as some I have witnessed. There may be hope yet to help restore some of the tissue, but I make no guarantees." A quick flash of grief crossed through Arienne’s own, blue eyes as she thought of Zirk’s horribly burned body and the salves she had made. She stoically pushed the thought from her mind for the time being.

Her glance darted to Silvara, but her Trinity sister had the same unreadable expression on her face that she always wore. She looked back to Darius and smiled, reaching out to take his hand in hers. "The words you uttered may have triggered the magic, but it is also possible that they only allowed your innate abilities to come forth and bloom. I am not sure what we can offer you here, other than perhaps training on how to better control such things." Arienne looked at Silvara again. "When he uttered the words for you, did you recognize them? Are they arcane, psionic or something else entirely, Silvara? And when we are done here, my sister, I would perhaps like a word or two alone with you, if I may?"

 Arienne nodded at Silvara, letting Darius’ hands drop from hers and getting up from the comfortable couch. She followed the Fire Mage out into the hallway and softly closed the door behind them. When they were alone, she faced Silvara with a grim expression and sighed, crossing her arms in front of her and suppressing a small shiver. "There is only once when I have seen burns worse than that," she said in a subdued voice, knowing Silvara would catch the reference and that she wouldn’t need to say more. "I do suspect that the trauma of everything that has happened to him has helped shut him off from the rest of the world, and I think he will take much care to regain any kind of ‘normal life’, my friend. I have not the time to devote to such an undertaking at the moment, and will not even begin to tell you that I understand how his ‘magic’ works, for I do not."

Arienne’s blue eyes held a shadow of concern and she shook her head in thought, then looked up to her friend’s face. "Would it be possible for you to take him as an apprentice, Silvara? He could learn much from you, I think, and that you have things in common would only further strengthen any kind of bond the two of you might form." The silver-haired mage paused, tapping a finger thoughtfully against her lip. "That is my recommendation for now. However, if you do not think you can take him on as an apprentice, I am unsure as to what to tell him or where to send him. I don’t like to refuse anyone asking for help, you know this. But..." She shrugged and spread her hands wide as if at a loss. "As I told him, I’m not certain what else we can offer."

Darius watched as the two female mages took their leave of him and went out into the hallway to talk, closing the door behind him.

He feared that this would happen.

"They're just like all the rest," Darius thought to himself. "They're all smiles on the outside but they're appalled by me on the insides. I see I was wrong in coming here...I have to leave immediately."

Darius looked for another exit but couldn't find one, other than the one that led into the hallway.

He started saying the words for a teleport spell, but the tears were making it hard for  him to finish it.

 Arienne's keen elven ears caught the sound of chanting from the room they had just left and her eyes widened. "Do you hear that?" she asked Silvara, then flung the door open in alarm. An expression of puzzlement crossed her face as she observed Darius. "What are you doing?" she asked him in a soft, confused voice. "Please don't cry, Darius. We're trying to figure out a way to help you." The sylvan mage closed the distance between them and knelt next to the man, laying a gentle hand on his knee and offering him a small, sympathetic smile. "Won't you please let us help you if we can?" she asked.

 Arienne looked from one to the other and her smile widened at Darius' words. "I'm gladdened to hear that, Darius," she said sincerely. The mithril haired mage stood and regarded Silvara. "Here's your opportunity," she said with a wink. "Now, if you don't need me, there really is something that I must attend to back at Starsinger Tower. I'm happy to have been able to be available, but I need to get back to my potions." A somewhat rueful expression crossed her face. "All work and no play, you know." She waited patiently for word that her advice was not needed further at the moment, though it was obvious to both that she longed to be away.