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Winter Veil was in full swing in Ironforge. Carolers sang of the holiday cheers and many shopkeepers were prepping their decorations for the season. The smell of cinnamon, gingerbread, pine, strong mulled wine, and other seasonal scents wafted through the great halls. They intermingled with the usual smells of earth and forges and created an interesting scent. The Commons were already set up for the hustle of crowds celebrating the holiday.
Outside the gates, the eternal winter air was crisp. It was always that way, but it seemed more noticeable during Winter Veil. The decorations were less prominent at the gates, but echoed with the mountain city’s jubilations. The joy was still palpable out here at Ironforge’s entrance.
It did not matter to three individuals and their entourage of guards. The mix of human and dwarven guards would have been an odd sight to behold once, but after the Third War most knew that a certain prince, his lady love, and their dwarven chaperone were in the area. It was commonplace to see Prince Arthas Menethil, Lady Jaina Proudmoore, and Muradin Bronzebeard together in and around the City of Ironforge with King Magni Bronzebeard and King Terenas Menethil occasionally seen with them. Though today the two kings were absent as the young couple had a personal matter that they needed to discuss and wished to keep it between themselves before they reached a decision. It was not a happy discussion as it should have been. Unlike many discussions during this time of year, this was never a conversation that either Jaina or Arthas liked having. It was about their future marriage…
Jaina sighed quietly as she looked away from Arthas. She wasn’t sure what she had been expecting when she had come to talk to him, but honestly she was not surprised. It was always something with him being busy planning another siege into Lordaeron or something along the lines though she didn't blame him for that. She knew she would do the same if Kul Tiras had been in a similar situation. It didn't make the current issue between them any easier though.
“Another year before we wed, Arthas?” Jaina finally asked, letting her disappointment show as she looked back at him.
Arthas let out a sigh of his own. “The last siege didn't go as planned, Jaina.”
“That's what you said last time I brought this up,” she stated quietly. She was pretty sure she knew his next words, but she would let him say them just to make it clear to herself that things between them were slowly falling apart at the seams.
Those words came quickly. “The advance into Hillsbrad continues to be slow.”
Jaina narrowed her blue eyes. “You made contact with the remaining survivors, not to mention you have the backing of Gilneas. Surely you could set an organized strike into the Hillsbrad area.”
“Jaina, it is not so simple,” said Arthas, frowning a bit. Jaina returned the frown as he continued. “Not all the survivors are human. The Wildhammer dwarves are trying to retake the Hinterlands after they fell to the Scourge, nevermind the lands they lost in the Alterac Mountains. The orcs are only interested in helping as long as we provide transport to their kin in Kalimdor or give them a small piece of land to compensate for the ones that wish to remain. Don't get me started on the trolls or the elves. They have been at each other's throats since before our scouts made contact. And Gilneas-.”
“-is only helping because the Scourge don’t make good neighbors,” finished Muradin, seeming a little irritated that Arthas was trying to avoid the original topic. “Lad, ya can't keep tryin’ to get off the topic of marriage. Jaina’s been tryin’ to have this conversation for months now an’ your tryin’ to run circles around it to avoid it. You gotta stop an’ think about how Jaina and you're actually feelin’.”
Jaina smiled at Muradin. “Thank you, Muradin.”
Turning back to Arthas, Jaina finally asked, “Arthas? Do you actually want to get married?”
“Yes, of course I do,” Arthas answered immediately. “It's just that I want to have Lordaeron back before we do.”
Jaina frowned at Arthas. “At the rate things are going, we will be old by then.”
“So? We will still be together and I can easily pass the crown to my niece when it is time to step down,” said Arthas with great confidence.
“But I want to have children, Arthas. I want to have the security and stability in a romantic relationship. I want to feel safe in the knowledge that the person I have agreed to marry isn't worrying about anything so much that it keeps him from actually marrying and loving me,” Jaina said sadly.
“But I want to get Lordaeron back for you, Jaina,” Arthas responded. Jaina could tell he was trying to convince her. “Once I have Lordaeron back, I will provide for all your needs. I love you, Jaina.”
The pregnant pause after that statement hung heavily over the couple as Jaina gathered her thoughts. She realized Arthas no longer made her feel the way she would want to feel in a relationship, especially in a romantic one which was stable and secure. As that realization hit, another came crashing down: She, Lady Jaina Proudmoore of Theramore and Kul Tiras, was no longer in love with Prince Arthas Menethil. She still loved and cared for him, but it wasn't the love she once held for him. She suspected Arthas felt the same way, but was still in denial.
“You did once,” Jaina said quietly, her voice far calmer than she thought it would be.
Panic crossed the prince’s face.
“I still do!” Arthas exclaimed, trying to grasp at the breaking straws of their once beautiful romance.
Jaina shook her head sadly. “No, Arthas. I meant what I said earlier about stability and security. I don't feel that way with you anymore.”
“That's a lie! You still love me, Jaina,” Arthas cried, the panic taking hold of him as he tried to reach for her hands, tears beginning to form in his beautiful blue eyes.
Jaina pulled away before he could touch her. Shaking her head, she responded, “Yes, I still love you, Arthas. But I'm no longer in love with you.”
Tears began to form in her own eyes as she finally verbalized her sad realization. There was a choked pain in her voice, letting Arthas and the others nearby know that she did not say that easily. It sent her former beloved into a stunned silence, giving her time to speak and articulate her feelings farther.
“I can't pinpoint when I fell out of love with you, Arthas. I only know that there are several reasons -missed dates on both of our parts; our busy schedules with you leading the battles to retake the entirety of Lordaeron and I as the acting ambassador for the Horde, kal’dorei, and Tauren tribes; the avoidance of our future marriage and life after conversations; and other, more minor things that could be labeled as irritations than actual reasons from both sides- that have led me to the conclusion that we are not truly compatible in our relationship anymore,” Jaina explained, starting to pace to distract herself from Arthas’s tearfilled hurt expression. “The feelings I have for you have drastically changed over the years. I can't keep putting myself through this relationship thinking things are going to get better in the future when the future seems so far away and in many ways out of our reach. I want -no, I need- to live in the now with someone who doesn't put me second to everything else going on in his life. That stays true to their word when other obligations take precedence and not blow me off when I try to reorganize things we were planning on doing.”
Arthas, still crying, finally shouted, “Jaina! I don't put you second! You are always my priority! I still love you!”
Arthas ran in front of her, forcing Jaina to stop pacing. He tried to reach out to grab her hands to comfort her and show her he was being true, but she stepped back and put her left hand up in a stop motion. She finally looked him in the eyes, revealing her own tear streaked face and shook her head silently.
“I am done, Arthas.”
The wind blew quietly as those sorrowful words began to sink in for Jaina and Arthas. The bleakness of the ever cold mountain air amplified the pain in Jaina's heart. She was hurting herself just as much as she was hurting Arthas, but she knew if she continued their relationship, they would end up resenting each other.
Finally, Jaina gazed at the ring Arthas had proposed to her with after the Battle of Mount Hyjal. It was a plain gold band with a single seafoam sapphire embedded in it. Arthas had had it made shortly before Thrall’s Horde escaped to the sea to head for Kalimdor, but when the Third War hit Arthas held onto it as they battled both the Scourge and the Burning Legion. She remembered how much it meant to her that he had chosen a new band with such a rare jewel that was deeply coveted by her homeland rather than use his mother's cherished ring for the proposal. Now, it was little more than a lead weight on her hand.
Quietly, Jaina pulled the once precious gift off her finger and looked at it for the last time. Then, despite the tearful plea written across Arthas's face, she gently grabbed one of his hands, placed the ring within the palm, and closed his hand around it.
“I'm sorry Arthas, but I can’t do this anymore. I can't pretend that I'm still in love with you,” Jaina said sadly. “I wish you well but I must say farewell.”
She turned away from Arthas and walked away towards the Ironforge's entrance, tears streaming down her face. She needed to inform her family that the engagement was off. She needed to cry her pain and sorrows in the comforting embrace of her beloved mother. She needed to be in the comfort of her childhood room where she could mourn the loss of her feelings for her former fiance.
As she entered Ironforge, she silently wept.
………………
As Jaina walked away, Arthas stood frozen as he watched her. The tears streamed down his face as he felt a pain deep in his chest. He was shaking and wished it was simply the cold of the mountain winds and not for the reason it truly was for.
He had lost her. He lost the one person he had loved since he was a young teenager. He had lost the girl who charmed him with her willingness to adventure and not worry about dirt getting on her clothes or grime getting into her hair. Worst of all, he lost the woman that was always trying to be there for him, especially in his darkest moments.
Jaina had always been there for him, especially when Stratholme fell to the demon Mal’Ganis. She had been there for every moment after, from the Northrend Expedition to Uther’s sacrifice to the Fall of the Capitol to the flight to Dalaran to sailing to Kalimdor to alliance with the Horde and the kal'dorei to the costly victory at Mount Hyjal. She was there for every important event after that as well, even when both of their lives got busy with their day-to-day duties. But now, she was gone and he knew he was the only one to blame for it.
Arthas opened his hand from around the simple gold band and gazed at it quietly. He knew he had been causing his beloved Jaina heartache when he began focusing his efforts into regaining a foothold into his homeland. At one point in time, his words about regaining Lordaeron for Jaina had been true. He had been trying to get Lordaeron back so he could give Jaina a proper throne to sit upon as his eventual queen consort and so their children could be born on Lordaeron soil. He had been so desperate to give her that future that he forgot to actually be around when she actually needed him.
“Lad?”
Muradin’s voice pierced through his thoughts. Arthas looked down at his confidant and mentor and saw the mix of sorrow and concern in the dwarf’s face. It was funny how Muradin had caught on to the fact that he and Jaina were starting to drift a year into their relationship. Muradin had been the first person to recognize they were falling apart -at least from what Arthas gathered- and that led to the cacophony of concerned friends and family pointing out the damage he was causing. Arthas had ignored them at the time, thinking their relationship was none of their concern and that while things were not perfect in the engagement, it was stable. He chose to ignore their concerns and continued to push into southern edges of Lordaeron. He now wished he hadn't ignored them and by extension Jaina.
“I-I…” Arthas stuttered, trying to find the strength to say the last part without sobbing. He wanted to say that he was fine, but knew that Muradin would not buy it for a second. Considering what just happened, he probably wouldn't be believing that Arthas would be ok for a while.
Muradin's eyes softened a little and grabbed Arthas's arm gently, comfortingly. “It's ok, lad. It's gonna be ok. If ya need to let the rest of your sorrow out, go ahead. I doubt anyone will blame ye.”
At first, Arthas did not want to appear broken before so many people, but realized quickly that everyone here was either a friend or a loyal guard. They would say nothing.
So he fell to his knees and wept.
Arthas wept for the lost romance with the woman he thought would always be in love with him. He wept for the times they were even just friends. He wept for the fact that Jaina was in pain as well and had been for months. And he wept because he knew Jaina was telling the truth about both of them falling out of love with each other and being in denial of that fact. He wept for himself the most because he knew if he had put in the effort, they would have been talking about their wedding ceremony then. Now it would never be.
But the worst part of all, he wept for the fact that he felt relieved instead of hollow. And he hated himself for feeling that way.