Elfling
Written, Spell Checked, and goofed up by Caladiel Meril Williams.
Summary: An Elven child is found in the real world by a young single guy
with a career. Since he can't find the child's parents, he ends up having
to raise it himself. Guess how much his girlfriend likes that.
Rating: PG for typical new daddy angst. (puke, diaper changes, etc.)
Disclaimer: Any similarity or likeness to Tolkien's characters is purely
accidental, and in some cases a cryin' shame. I do not own 'Jak & Daxter'
or Microsoft, but I know the next Bill Gates, He's a fifteen year old
computer whiz named Samuel Lucidi. He's fixed my computer many times.
Author's Notes and Misc Ramblings:
Erestor, If you read this story and you don't like it, I'm SSSSSOOOOO
sorry. Kinda got inspired on New Year's Eve while over at my friend's
house. The baby's father is not Legolas. This is sorta preLotR, maybe
even preFirst-War-Of-The-Ring. And the baby is not Legolas either.
Chapter One: A Foundling.
Mark Jeffersson heard a weird sound in his kitchen. Thinking it was the
coffee pot boiling over, he ran into the kitchen. There was a pile of
rags on the floor, he got closer and realized they weren't rags, but a
finely woven irridescent satin cloak. He touched it and jumped back in
alarm when it moved. He frowned and picked it up. He heard something coo,
and decided he'd better figure out what was in that bundle right now. He
put the bundle down on the counter and unwrapped it.
An amazingly beautiful baby with tanzanite blue eyes looked up at him,
its head wreathed in soft golden hair. Mark was shocked. He lifted the
baby and got a better look at it. He got a funny feeling in the pit of
his stomach when he saw the baby's ears. The baby's ears came to a
graceful point. That was certainly odd. Mark wondered how a baby had
ended up in his kitchen. He looked at his watch.
He had to be at work in an hour, but he had to do something with this kid
first. He got a bright idea and called his girlfriend, Leslie.
"Hey Leslie, someone left a baby in my kitchen, I was wondering if you
could watch it till I get back from work?"
"Mark, are you crazy? I have, like, a job interview this afternoon. Watch
your own pet." Leslie said.
"It's not a pet, it's a baby, and it's not mine. I don't know how to take
care of it." Mark said flatly.
"I'm not watching it Mark. Find a daycare or give it to the police."
Leslie said.
Mark sighed, looking at the baby's innocent face. The baby reached for
his face.
On the other side of the line, Leslie was filing her nails with her other
boyfriend sitting next to her.
Leslie looked like a Barbie doll, with bleached blonde hair, blue
contacts, and ridiculously long fingernails. She was only Mark's
girlfriend because of the advantages it gave her. He was a computer
technician for Microsoft. He was way up there too, so he had a pretty
good salary.
"Fine, I'll talk to you later Leslie." Mark said, hanging up the phone.
The baby had Mark's finger in his mouth and was gumming it.
"I take it I'll have to bring you to work with me. But if you erase one
computer program, that's it, I'll have to find someone else to take you."
he sighed.
He took the little one to work, and made sure to save his work often, but
the baby kept its hands to itself. Occaisionally it reached up, trying to
get a hold of Mark's jet black hair, but never touched the computer
keyboard. It only wanted Mark, and fell asleep with a fist full of Mark's
shirt.
Naturally, Mark wondered if the baby was male or female, because he
really didn't want to deal with a female infant.
Presently, an unpleasant smell alerted him to the fact that the baby
needed a diaper change, and badly. He had to leave the office to get
diapers. That was a public embarassment. In the process, he found that
the baby was indeed a male.
"I guess you need a name, huh?" Mark said, giving the baby a bottle of
infant formula.
"What do you think of Adrian?"
The baby made a hideous face.
"Hmm, how about Jonathan?" Mark asked.
The baby gurgled his agreement.
"Jonathan. A gift." Mark mused, going back to his office with the
sleeping baby in his arms.
The little one slept for hours, his head against Mark's chest. Mark took
a strange fascination with the way those little ears twitched in response
to sounds. Mark got a lot done, programming a new adventure game that was
a lot like 'Jak and Daxter'. Mark was in charge of programming the main
character. The sketches were odd looking, and he didn't like any of them.
He got a great idea. When he got home he would ask one of his friends, an
artist, to do an Elf sketch for him, and try that out in addition to the
other artists' impressions. He'd programmed rough demos of three of the
sketches by the end of the day. He particularly disliked the one with
ears long enough to tie in a bow, but the one that looked like an ox
wasn't exactly great either.
He got home, put the baby on his bed with pillows to keep him from
rolling off the edges, and called Alissa, his artistic friend. She'd done
game art for him before. She had curly red hair, and looked very Irish.
She came over. The baby was asleep, so Mark figured he could leave him.
He and Alissa worked on the concept art for nearly two hours, but it just
wasn't coming out the way he wanted it to. The baby woke up and Mark went
to get him. When he came back and started to give the baby a bottle,
Alissa blanched.
"Where'd you get that?" she asked sharply.
"I found him in my kitchen this morning." Mark said. "Why? Do you know
where I can find his parents?"
"No Mark, I can't help you there, but I had a dream about him last night.
I think his parents are dead." Alissa said.
She dug through her sketchbook.
"I think this is what you want, this is a sketch of his father from the
dream." she said, handing him a sketch of a masculine looking Elf in
medival clothing with a longbow and a curved sword. He had blond hair
that reached his shoulderblades, and piercing blue eyes set in a noble
looking face.
Mark's eyes went wide.
"Alissa, that's exactly what I wanted, now I need a storyline. If you can
cook one up by morning, I'll submit it to the board on Friday to see if
they'll accept it for the new game." Mark said."I've got a hunch on this.
This could be your big break."
Alissa nodded and started to gather up her things.
"Oh, Alissa, he'd need a sidekick, and if you can dream one up, that
would be cool." Mark said. "But you don't have to. Someone else could if
you don't want to."
Alissa smiled.
"I'll have a storyline and a sidekick for you by morning." she said. "And
some more sketches to make your animations easier."
Mark didn't sleep much that night. Jonathan had to be fed pretty
frequently, and Mark was really worried about Alissa's dream being true.
By morning Alissa had an in depth storyline, more sketches of the hero,
sketches of a sidekick, sketches of the villian and the villian's
minions, and some of the creatures for the game.
Needless to say, Mark was impressed. She must have been up all night. The
sidekick intrigued Mark. He looked like the hero, but with dark hair and
brown eyes and slightly smaller. The minions were ugly, not quite LotR
Orcs, but almost as ugly. The villian himself was fascinating. He was
quite human in form, with a prideful and evil air about him. He didn't
look ugly at all, but was obviously evil in disguise. He contrasted
beautifully with the hero, and Mark was pretty sure that these would be
the final skins for the characters.
The storyline was that the hero's child has been kidnapped, his wife
killed. He and his brother set off to rescue the son, and along the way
have many tests to pass, many roads to choose from, and many dangers to
face. In the end the hero and his brother save the hero's son, but the
brother dies.
Alissa's storyline had given Mark enough material to work into
twenty-five to thirty levels. It was way too much to put into ten. He
spent most of the day creating the characters and skinning them. The
other characters he'd done didn't even compare.
His job finished and the characters ready to be screened, he burned them
onto a CD, and shut down his computer, then took the CD home with him.
Written, Spell Checked, and goofed up by Caladiel Meril Williams.
Summary: An Elven child is found in the real world by a young single guy
with a career. Since he can't find the child's parents, he ends up having
to raise it himself. Guess how much his girlfriend likes that.
Rating: PG for typical new daddy angst. (puke, diaper changes, etc.)
Disclaimer: Any similarity or likeness to Tolkien's characters is purely
accidental, and in some cases a cryin' shame. I do not own 'Jak & Daxter'
or Microsoft, but I know the next Bill Gates, He's a fifteen year old
computer whiz named Samuel Lucidi. He's fixed my computer many times.
Author's Notes and Misc Ramblings:
Erestor, If you read this story and you don't like it, I'm SSSSSOOOOO
sorry. Kinda got inspired on New Year's Eve while over at my friend's
house. The baby's father is not Legolas. This is sorta preLotR, maybe
even preFirst-War-Of-The-Ring. And the baby is not Legolas either.
Chapter One: A Foundling.
Mark Jeffersson heard a weird sound in his kitchen. Thinking it was the
coffee pot boiling over, he ran into the kitchen. There was a pile of
rags on the floor, he got closer and realized they weren't rags, but a
finely woven irridescent satin cloak. He touched it and jumped back in
alarm when it moved. He frowned and picked it up. He heard something coo,
and decided he'd better figure out what was in that bundle right now. He
put the bundle down on the counter and unwrapped it.
An amazingly beautiful baby with tanzanite blue eyes looked up at him,
its head wreathed in soft golden hair. Mark was shocked. He lifted the
baby and got a better look at it. He got a funny feeling in the pit of
his stomach when he saw the baby's ears. The baby's ears came to a
graceful point. That was certainly odd. Mark wondered how a baby had
ended up in his kitchen. He looked at his watch.
He had to be at work in an hour, but he had to do something with this kid
first. He got a bright idea and called his girlfriend, Leslie.
"Hey Leslie, someone left a baby in my kitchen, I was wondering if you
could watch it till I get back from work?"
"Mark, are you crazy? I have, like, a job interview this afternoon. Watch
your own pet." Leslie said.
"It's not a pet, it's a baby, and it's not mine. I don't know how to take
care of it." Mark said flatly.
"I'm not watching it Mark. Find a daycare or give it to the police."
Leslie said.
Mark sighed, looking at the baby's innocent face. The baby reached for
his face.
On the other side of the line, Leslie was filing her nails with her other
boyfriend sitting next to her.
Leslie looked like a Barbie doll, with bleached blonde hair, blue
contacts, and ridiculously long fingernails. She was only Mark's
girlfriend because of the advantages it gave her. He was a computer
technician for Microsoft. He was way up there too, so he had a pretty
good salary.
"Fine, I'll talk to you later Leslie." Mark said, hanging up the phone.
The baby had Mark's finger in his mouth and was gumming it.
"I take it I'll have to bring you to work with me. But if you erase one
computer program, that's it, I'll have to find someone else to take you."
he sighed.
He took the little one to work, and made sure to save his work often, but
the baby kept its hands to itself. Occaisionally it reached up, trying to
get a hold of Mark's jet black hair, but never touched the computer
keyboard. It only wanted Mark, and fell asleep with a fist full of Mark's
shirt.
Naturally, Mark wondered if the baby was male or female, because he
really didn't want to deal with a female infant.
Presently, an unpleasant smell alerted him to the fact that the baby
needed a diaper change, and badly. He had to leave the office to get
diapers. That was a public embarassment. In the process, he found that
the baby was indeed a male.
"I guess you need a name, huh?" Mark said, giving the baby a bottle of
infant formula.
"What do you think of Adrian?"
The baby made a hideous face.
"Hmm, how about Jonathan?" Mark asked.
The baby gurgled his agreement.
"Jonathan. A gift." Mark mused, going back to his office with the
sleeping baby in his arms.
The little one slept for hours, his head against Mark's chest. Mark took
a strange fascination with the way those little ears twitched in response
to sounds. Mark got a lot done, programming a new adventure game that was
a lot like 'Jak and Daxter'. Mark was in charge of programming the main
character. The sketches were odd looking, and he didn't like any of them.
He got a great idea. When he got home he would ask one of his friends, an
artist, to do an Elf sketch for him, and try that out in addition to the
other artists' impressions. He'd programmed rough demos of three of the
sketches by the end of the day. He particularly disliked the one with
ears long enough to tie in a bow, but the one that looked like an ox
wasn't exactly great either.
He got home, put the baby on his bed with pillows to keep him from
rolling off the edges, and called Alissa, his artistic friend. She'd done
game art for him before. She had curly red hair, and looked very Irish.
She came over. The baby was asleep, so Mark figured he could leave him.
He and Alissa worked on the concept art for nearly two hours, but it just
wasn't coming out the way he wanted it to. The baby woke up and Mark went
to get him. When he came back and started to give the baby a bottle,
Alissa blanched.
"Where'd you get that?" she asked sharply.
"I found him in my kitchen this morning." Mark said. "Why? Do you know
where I can find his parents?"
"No Mark, I can't help you there, but I had a dream about him last night.
I think his parents are dead." Alissa said.
She dug through her sketchbook.
"I think this is what you want, this is a sketch of his father from the
dream." she said, handing him a sketch of a masculine looking Elf in
medival clothing with a longbow and a curved sword. He had blond hair
that reached his shoulderblades, and piercing blue eyes set in a noble
looking face.
Mark's eyes went wide.
"Alissa, that's exactly what I wanted, now I need a storyline. If you can
cook one up by morning, I'll submit it to the board on Friday to see if
they'll accept it for the new game." Mark said."I've got a hunch on this.
This could be your big break."
Alissa nodded and started to gather up her things.
"Oh, Alissa, he'd need a sidekick, and if you can dream one up, that
would be cool." Mark said. "But you don't have to. Someone else could if
you don't want to."
Alissa smiled.
"I'll have a storyline and a sidekick for you by morning." she said. "And
some more sketches to make your animations easier."
Mark didn't sleep much that night. Jonathan had to be fed pretty
frequently, and Mark was really worried about Alissa's dream being true.
By morning Alissa had an in depth storyline, more sketches of the hero,
sketches of a sidekick, sketches of the villian and the villian's
minions, and some of the creatures for the game.
Needless to say, Mark was impressed. She must have been up all night. The
sidekick intrigued Mark. He looked like the hero, but with dark hair and
brown eyes and slightly smaller. The minions were ugly, not quite LotR
Orcs, but almost as ugly. The villian himself was fascinating. He was
quite human in form, with a prideful and evil air about him. He didn't
look ugly at all, but was obviously evil in disguise. He contrasted
beautifully with the hero, and Mark was pretty sure that these would be
the final skins for the characters.
The storyline was that the hero's child has been kidnapped, his wife
killed. He and his brother set off to rescue the son, and along the way
have many tests to pass, many roads to choose from, and many dangers to
face. In the end the hero and his brother save the hero's son, but the
brother dies.
Alissa's storyline had given Mark enough material to work into
twenty-five to thirty levels. It was way too much to put into ten. He
spent most of the day creating the characters and skinning them. The
other characters he'd done didn't even compare.
His job finished and the characters ready to be screened, he burned them
onto a CD, and shut down his computer, then took the CD home with him.