"Seilu, what did you do to your face this time?" The aged high elf asked his blonde daughter, staring in horror at the new nose ring and eyebrow piercing. She folded her arms and glared back, her cyan eyes filled with defiance. "Take them out."
She scowled, her eyebrows furrowing. "Make me." She knew her father would never physically harm her, nor grab her and take out the piercings himself. He didn't have anything to bribe her with, either.
His frown mirrored hers- she did get it from somewhere- and he drew a palm over his face. "I don't understand why you're doing this," he muttered sourly, turning his back to her. That was fine. He didn't understand her, so of course he wouldn't comprehend her reasoning behind anything she did.
The teenage Seilu uncrossed her arms, then put her hands on her hips with a more impish, but at the same time more challenging and serious grin. "Ann'da, when is practice tomorrow?"
He didn't skip a beat before replying, "You're only wasting my time by coming. You barely even try to keep up and you can hardly lift a sword, nevermind wield one."
"Bullshit! If you'd just-"
"Don't you dare raise your voice at me." The iciness in his voice made the girl stop. "If I hear that kind of language out of your mouth again..." He trailed off. Neither of them were entirely sure where he was going with that, but Seilu knew her father would likely come up with something.
After a moment of tense silence, the blonde-haired Quel'dorei turned and stormed away, intending to go and sulk in her room. She wouldn't allow him to see her tears or weakness. She wished her mother was still alive- she knew the black-haired woman would encourage her, rather than deny her aspirations.
~x~
It was during the following hours of solitude that Seilu decided that she would run away. If her father wouldn't teach her to be a warrior, she would find someone else to and she would be the strongest fighter he'd ever laid eyes on. A part of her sought his approval, but her impudent, adolescent self mostly just wanted to shove it in his face that he'd been wrong.
Rather than find a tutor, however, Seilu found herself poor and vulnerable as she wandered a human town. It was when she found herself pinned to the wall by the man whose pocket she tried to pick that an idea struck her- perhaps she didn't have to be the same kind of warrior- perhaps she could fight from the shadows instead.
She found the same man who'd caught her the next day and demanded to be trained as a rogue- she was young, selfish and feisty, refusing to take no for an answer. For some reason, he agreed.
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