Note: Thank you to those that have commented, favs, alerts and/or watches this story. I greatly appreciate it and I hope this chapter gives you more. There will be one more chapter (the next chapter) that will explain or at least give you insight on how she ended up with who she does. Also, I'm holding a naming thing of some sort for Everly's mare. So if you have any name(s) for her, just drop a PM to me or in your review. More to come soon.

Reviews are great and wonderful; flames are not tolerated.

Chapter Two: The Elven Kind

Time has moved on since that frightful day. Days turned into weeks and weeks turned into months and later years. Each summer that passes, Everly is more grateful that she was alive. If it wasn't for him; the thought crossed her mind of what the out come could have been. She would be dead if he didn't save her...

She's had 10 birthdays since then.

She's grown to accept what came to pass in the cave with her father. It was the last time she had seen him; never again would she lay eyes on him with his hateful eyes or his cruel words no longer will haunt her at night like they did 8 years ago. Cold sweats, bloody-heart wrenching screams and waking everyone and everything within a 50 mile radius.

She remembered everything but as time went on little by little her memories began to fade. And she was thankful for that. No one should experience what she endured as a child. A vengeful father who was seeking blood over something she had no control over. She did not know-no one did that her mother would die from child birth. It sadden her heart just thinking about it.

But it was he, the Grey Wizard, that taught her to know she was not the cause. 'Life has mysterious ways of turning out.' He told her, still she weep inside for a mother she never knew.

Everly hadn't changed much since her younger years. Eyes were still bright as green grass on a spring day, her blonde hair was long-it only grew to the middle of her back. She kept it braided mostly, on occasions did she let it flow. She was slender built with fine muscles lines out in their rightful place. Scars were thin, white and fading hardly noticeable against the creamy color skin she was blessed with.

She discovered she was half elf with her pointy ears. She grinned, tracing her fingers over their points. It was like yesterday she was told she was of the elven kind.

...

Everly stared at the gray haired man curiously, tilting her head to the side. There was something different about him that made her stare. He puffed on his pipe, resting against the trunk of a tree. She sat beside him in the grass, her small fingers toying with the blades of green but she wasn't really paying much attention to it.

She stared long and hard, studying his features. Never before had she ever seen another person before. Now she sat beside one. All she ever had was her imagination to the outside.

But nothing prepared her for this. The Grey Wizard had a lot of hair. Long and gray with strands of dark and white. He mostly wore his hat, though today he did not. She was fascinated by him. He carried a funny looking stick everywhere he went. He had bushy eyebrows and a big nose with eyes that said a million things.

Everly often found herself touching her own facial features. Questions swirling around her head: would she have bushy eyebrows like his or would she grow a beard as long as his? Would she grow tall or stay the same height she was now? Was there a walking stick in her future-maybe that was why the wizard had one...

There was so much to learn.

"What is it, child?" His voice pulled her from her thoughts, his eyes looking to her as the puff from his pipe separated into two.

Everly looked away shyly; feeling her cheeks grow with warmth. Her pinkish lips parted and she smiled. "Gandalf?"

One of his bushy brows arched. "What is it, child?" He asked again, seeing she was anxious to speak but never did.

"Will I..." She paused for a moment as she turned to look up at the much older man. Her eyes held such curiosity, she couldn't help herself but to ask: "Will I have bushy eyebrows like you when I grow up?"

Gandalf nearly choked on the smoke from his pipe. He coughed once. Clearing his throat, he told her the truth. He knew from the short conversations that they held before she froze up and stopped talking to him; Everly was taken away from the outside world. There were things that she did not know. There were many races that lives and shares the land she didn't have the honor of knowing. "No, child." He said, flatly. "Girls of your statue and features do not grow bushy eyebrows."

She nodded once with her understanding. "What about a beard? Could I grow one of those too, Gandalf?"

Gandalf shook his head, hiding the amusement that toyed with the corners of his mouth. "Girls don't grow beards. It's not in their nature to have such hair except for the hairs on their heads." He looked straight ahead, letting the young child take a moment to let what his words were to sink in. He puffed on his pipe allowing the smoke to escape the small opening in his mouth to form circles and sail boats passing through.

There was a long moment of silence as Everly sat there. There was much to take in when she found out that girls do not and can not grow beards or have bushy eyebrows when they get older. It was a disappointment but a little relief that she wouldn't have such hair.

She sighed softly, stretching out on the ground beside him, resting her chin in the palm of her hand. Once again she stared at him. "Gandalf?"

"What is it, child?"

"Why are your ears different then mine? Smooth and round, not pointy. Is there something wrong with mine?" She asked him.

Gandalf pulled the pipe from his mouth and placed it down on the ground next to him. "There is nothing wrong with your ears. They're of the elven kind. All elves have pointy ears."

She looked at him confused. She's never heard of the elven kind in which he spoke of. How could that be when her father did not have pointy ears like hers. "Elven kind?" She asked as she touched the tip of her ear with her finger. "What are those, Gandalf?"

"Elves, child."

"How am I...elf?' She asked as she looked at her hand. Her hand was small, a few thin scars were blended in with the color of her skin-scars from when she would shield herself. "My daddy didn't have pointy ears... He's a..." Her words faded, sighing heavily.

Everly often tried to speak of him but it felt painful to do so. She wanted to cry but there were no tears to fall. She wanted to ask the wizard why her father hated her so much when he had all the answers to her questions. She couldn't.

Gandalf sensed the mix emotion, the lonely look in her eyes. He knew she seeked answers. Her mind was troubled for such a young child.

It was unsettling that he had none for her.

Instead, Gandalf patted her gently on the top of her head. "Do not fret my child. The blood of the elves in you came from your mother. It is she who has blessed you with her kin."

The answer was enough to satisfy the young one, knowing that it was her mother who had graced her and not the terrible things that her father was made the empty hole inside her heart to close just a little.

"Tell me more Gandalf?"

"They live in cities of their own deep in the forests like the one we are traveling through. They are considered to be the most beautiful creatures of all races that inhabit this world. Some elves are skilled fighters while some are great healers. They're mostly drawn to the wooden areas."

Everly listened intently to his story. "What do they look like?"

"In some ways like you. They have long hair, bright eyes that can see far beyond normal sight. They are tall in height and have pale skin. They have pointy ears for great hearing. They're light on their feet and very crafty with bows and swords."

She grinned widely. "They sound wonderful. Will I ever meet one?"

Gandalf smiled his own as he looked at her. He could see the light in her eyes brighten; something he hadn't seen in a while. "One day, child you very well might." He picked his pipe back up and puffed on it a few times to get the spark going again. "Now rest. We leave when the sun comes out from the horizon."

Everly parted her lips, enjoying the stories the old wizard had. But she knew very well to listen and so she did. She reached for the bundle of blankets and took one covering herself with it. The ground was soft beneath her, the grass cushioning her plenty.

She blinked staring out as far as her elf eyes would take her. He was right and she smiled again.

"Gandalf?"

"What is it now, child?"

But there wasn't another peep from the young girl that laid beside him. Her eyes were closed and the soft sound of her breathing were enough; for she was asleep now.

He went back to smoking his pipe, a smile hanging on as he kept watch through the rest of the night.

...

That was 9 years ago she was told the story about the elves; still she had not seen one. There were more questions then answers traveling with the old wizard. Learning about the world around her was so much fun, discovering that there were more then elves and wizards. Men, dwarves and hobbits-she loved the stories about the hobbits he told her. 'Never underestimate the size of a hobbit.' Gandalf told her, 'They are the smallest of them all but they are cunning and sneaky.'

She learned of the major cities that were important to know. She discovered fine clothing some she was even told were created by the elves themselves. She was anxious to look. Memorized by their beauty and colors that were more in tune with the forest.

She loved music, mostly those of melody that were sung with emotion. She was drawn to animals, especially those that were in cages. When she weeped for them, Gandalf would release them bringing a little hope to her.

Gandalf never left her alone for long periods of time in the beginning until she was older and understood more. At first she was scared and begged and pleaded for him not to leave her. After the second outburst he came back with a chestnut colored mare. "Learn to ride the mare. She will keep your mind busy and you will not notice I'm gone. I'll return when the sun touches the horizon.

"Can I not go with you, Gandalf?" Everly asked, the tears falling from her eyes but she was staring at the horse grazing in the grass.

Gandalf shook his head. "Not this time, child. I have business I must attend too. Now dry those eyes and go meet your horse."

When she stopped to ask him yet another question, she turned and he was already gone.

It was a lesson to be learned and in the end Gandalf was right; the mare did help her.