Disclaimer: I don't own any of Tolkien's brilliant world. Ah, but I wish I did… ;)

Author: born to be hanged aka Meltintalle

Title: Poisoned Turquoise

Rating: PG-13 (an R chapter is possible; there will be a warning)

Genre(s): Action/Adventure/Drama/Romance

Compact Summary: Aressëa is captured by orcs and blinded by a poison, which causes her eyes to turn an unnatural turquoise. This is the story of an Elf who tries to find her true colors in a world of only darkness. Will she succeed in finding her starry night whilst in the midst of a moonless darkness? Full summary inside. R&R!

Author's Note: Ok, I don't really know if there ever was a blind Elf or not in the entire history of Middle Earth. But my guess is that not. This does not exclude them from becoming blind, so I'm implying that their sight can be taken from them. But I'm not saying that they can be born blind. Because I don't know if they can. :)

By the way, this is sort of a précis of the entire story. I'll probably start describing everything from the time she was captured and brought to the Misty Mountains. So parts of the summary will be put into much more detail possibly in the first couple of chapters.

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italicized text indicates a character's thoughts

A special thanks to my beta, Miranda (a.k.a. Lailonniel22)

Poisoned Turquoise

Summary

No Elf in the history of Middle-earth was ever born into darkness. Elves valued their senses, but sight was one that was treasured. To be confined to a life of black was terrifying. But it was possible.

At a very young age, Aressëa traveled with her parents from Imladris, their destination being Lórien. Only halfway into their journey, Aressëa was becoming restless, as was her playmate, Norion, another young Elfling who was traveling with his parents.

One night, she decided to wander into the surrounding lands in search of a bit of fun. Of course, she was not alone; her playmate was close behind. They decided to play a game. Whoever traveled the farthest from the Elven camp without anyone noticing would win. But they would never get far.

A band of orcs was traveling just south of their campgrounds, and the voices of the two unattended young Elves caused the band to travel quickly towards the camp. They soon came upon the two unaware Elflings and took them captive. By this time, the company of Elves had awakened, and were locating the large pack of orcs.

Several of the orc were killed, while many of the others ran from the site and took refuge in the Misty Mountains. They took the two Elflings with them, but the orcs separated into two groups, each group taking one Elfling. Aressëa never saw her playmate again.

Aressëa was taken to the Misty Mountains and held prisoner there. Over time, the orcs traveled past Rohan and towards the borders of Gondor, all the while keeping the Elfling as their prisoner. They mistreated her and used her as an example. How long could an Elf endure pain? They finally managed to destroy her sight. A poison was thrust into her face, turning her world dark. To those who could see, the poison had had an effect on her eyes, an effect that turned them an unnatural turquoise color.

At some point, the patrols of Gondor discovered the weakening company of orcs. The men of Gondor destroyed their party, therefore rescuing the being they had then thought to be a human. Aressëa's eyes looked strange and unfocused, not normal, and her thick hair hid the pointed tips of her ears for the time being.

Only later did the people of Gondor discover that she was of Elven descent. But none dared to bring a blind child on a dangerous journey in search of beings they could not find easily. So Aressëa was to stay in the realm of men for the time being.

But the events' effects on such a young being were not positive. Aressëa had gone through such an experience, and at such a young age, that time helped her mind block out all memories about her family, heritage, and most of all herself. Her own horrifying account of the months in the company of her captors was her last memory.

This is the story of an Elf who tries to find her true colors in a world of only darkness. Will she succeed in finding her starry night whilst in the midst of a moonless darkness?

Author's Note: So what do you think? This is only the first portion of the story, don't worry. I haven't given you the ending. ;) The part I've written about above will probably take no more than two or three chapters at the most. Then I'll proceed to the present time. Only a couple of chapters will be set in Gondor, the rest she'll be in the company of other Elves. I'll say no more.

Oh, and this won't be a tragedy, in case you were wondering. I like to write happy endings. ;)

I'll post the first chapter when I get a few responses saying yes or no. Review and tell me!

My beta did some research on the main character's name. It sounds close to Tol Eressëa, which means "Lonely Isle" (mentioned in the Silmarillion).

Meltintalle