" ... on one hand Mezzy ... "

It was the plaguelands, the western ramparts, beneath the bubbling cauldrons of farms fallen to the Scourge. And no matter how many days they were beaten back, come night they'd sneak in again, so that by dawn the fell broth was pouring the cursed smoke across those dying lands.

" ... of course I am. I'm sorry I'm not smart, like Miss Vamira, and know all about enchanting things. Or strong and skilled like Miss Nicole, to be able to find the leather off those beasts that fall. Or clever like Mister Ellundus, who can make potions that help folks be faster or smarter or not dragon burned.

"I just pick flowers.

"That's what they do right? Its kinda the same, but their flowers are usually oats and barly and hops and sometimes even broccoli.

"And when I get enough, I give them to folks who need them. Like Mister Ellundus, so he can help out other folks, to Mister Fubuki, cause he just needs to smile."

"Sometimes, though, I do sell them up in Ironforge.

"Is that wrong Mezzy?"

The little gnome lass just sat back on the hill, her fingers tracing the cuffs of her worn tunics. Bitten by wolves, tore at by ghoul claws, and soaked in spiders webs, making them uncomfortably icky. And this was a good day, not like those days stumbling into Kharanos with dragon tooth sized holes in her gear or the charing of a corehound's hot breath or the shredding of Arlokk's big black kittens.

"I even asked polite and all."

The little warlock looked down upon the brown autumnal grass.

"And I even made sure I didn't disturb their hunting at all - making sure you didn't give them a talon until their claims were made, even though we know we didn't have to. But that barn and fields, it's mean, Mezzy. The Scourge there don't wait wait for you, they see you beating on their kind and they all come over to try and stop you.

"Nice and respectful, I wanted to make sure they weren't gathering up the plagueblooms and tears of Arthas. Cause if they were I wasn't going to take them out from under their noses like's been done to me so many times before.

"I mean, it would have been right proper, if me and you were to rip right through that place and send those undead back to the spirits where they belong. The Argent Dawn, they'd be quite happy, when we brought back all those scourgestones to show them the good work done. And by the Great Gear, we know that Mister Ellundus is gonna need our help on the morrow as he ventures into the caverns beneath Blackrock Mountain and our packs of little pink gemstones were mostly empty.

"But we didn't, Mezzy.

"I know. And we've made our own mistakes before, like up in the tower south of Hearthglen. That wasn't supposed to happen that way, and I wish I could have apologized - but there's sometimes no way to stop things like that when calamity has tumbled onto calamity. I'm just not that smart, when it comes to things like that. But that's why I sat on the hill and just let him blast me back to the spirit plane without even fighting back at all.

"I'm rambling again, aren't I, Mezzy?

"But at that farm, we didn't do any of those things, did we, Mezzy.

"That wouldn't have been right."

She lifted her eyes to her big blue companion, trying to untangle the strangeness that wrapped about them.

"He didn't have to get all mean and nasty and cruel ...

"Telling me to go away ...

"And calling me a ... farmer ..."

The little gnome's brow furrowed.

"I just don't understand Mezzy.

"Sometimes I just don't understand real people."

... even when you try to be nice.