Disclaimer: Ok, I think we all know by now that I don't own these
characters except for Danali. I have merely borrowed them from the master
himself, Tolkien.
Uncertain Logic
The breeze sighed and gently intruded into Danali's thoughts as she reclined against the mallorn trunk behind her. Around her a small assembly of Elves were quietly eating dinner and conversing, their light voices blending with the faint whispers of the stars overhead. She heaved a sigh and wearily shrugged up against the slick bark, accidentally nudging the Elf sitting close beside her. Orophin immediately stopped shoving food in his mouth, turned toward her and smiled warmly, his silver-olive eyes dancing lightly. Danali blushed and resumed studying the linen strip wrapped tightly around her mutilated hand, turning it every which way and pretending she was observing play of moonlight on the cloth. She listened disinterestedly to the soft conversations being held around her, fragments of Elvish drifting about and wafting into the night sky. A small fire blazed in the center of the flet, it's warmth caressing Danali's face and hands, it's light shedding a muted glow on the congregated Elves and their dinners. Her own dinner lay untouched by her knee, her appetite mollified by sinking depression. What hope did she have of fitting in here? An overwhelming sense of apathy was replacing fear, and now she was wondering if it would be better for her to die.
Orophin's smooth voice interrupted her dark musings.
"I pray the food is to your liking, Lady?"
Danali slowly swung her head to face the concerned Elf, her expression totally blank, her eyes vacant. She dipped her chin once, twice. Orophin matched her steady gaze with his own, his face growing all of a sudden serious and almost menacing in the flickering firelight, shadows swirling about his cheeks and eyes.
" Of course, one does not know if something is good unless she tries it, no?"
Danali's head snapped up at the rebuke, her tongue at the ready with a searing reply, her eyes flaring, only to be met with a morsel of bread and a mirthful chuckle from Orophin. A gentle smile graced his face once more, and he raised his eyebrows in query, inviting her to take the bread he offered. Danali glared at the bemused Elf and lowered her head again, allowing her shoulder-length hair to swing around her face and tracing the stitching of her leggings with her finger.
Undaunted, Orophin replaced the bread on the girl's plate and broke off a piece of cheese to tempt her stubborn appetite. He rested the back of his hand on her folded knee and waited patiently for her to accept the creamy yellow food.
At the touch of Orophin's hand, Danali felt her temper begin to flare up, but managed to grasp a few strands of control and lift her head. Her eyes locked on Orophin while she firmly pushed the offending hand away from her leg, then pressed her lips together and crossed her arms, assuming a posture of defiance, the invisible walls protecting her from further attack.
'Like a child she is,' Orophin thought, then straightened himself as he remembered that she practically was a child. He glanced at her plate and grabbed an apple slice, then, with the patience of the immortal, leaned even closer to Danali and waited hopefully, apple in outstretched hand, for the gloomy young woman to notice.
He did not wait long.
Danali jerked her head up, calmly plucked the apple slice from between Orophin's fingers and just as calmly tossed it over her shoulder to the forest floor far below.
Orophin's eyes followed the forsaken fruit's trajectory until the darkness prohibited him to see further, his patience wavering a little as he regarded the stoic girl who refused to meet his gaze, her shoulders hunched as she drew her nightshaded cloak tighter about her shivering body, her bitter eyes staring straight ahead, seeing nothing. He felt eyes on his own back, and glanced behind to meet Haldir's dancing eyes, their grey light registering amusement; he had obviously been enjoying the tense interaction between the two. Orophin wanly smiled back and turned around to expend one last effort. He decided to make an attempt at humour, not bothering to consider the obvious fact that Danali was probably not in the best of moods for jesting.
" In Lorien, the law states that all who try to starve themselves shall be tied upside down to a branch and forced to listen to the entire history of the world."
Danali inhaled deeply and closed her eyes, attempting to retain her tenuous hold on control and shakily succeeding. The Elf was beginning to irritate her beyond all else, regardless of his intentions. She summoned up a supernatural will from somewhere, rendered her facial features expressionless and prayed that she would keep reign over her tongue. Her voice dripped annoyance.
" You really do think you're funny, don't you?"
Orophin shrugged the biting question off easily and grinned charmingly.
"Tis what my brothers tell me, and I do not dare to question their superior wisdom and excellent taste."
Danali could feel the smoke beginning to trickle out of her head.
"I beg to differ with your ever so wonderful brothers. Now kindly leave me be."
Orophin sprang back with his usual disarming affectation, still smiling cheerily, and decided to change the subject. He gently stroked a lock of Danali's hair and tugged it teasingly.
" Your hair. it's so short. I have not seen a lady with such short hair before."
Exasperated, Danali sighed, carefully gathered her hair in one hand and swept it around her head to the opposite shoulder, away from Orophin. She had been self-conscious about it since meeting the Elves with their long, shimmering tresses, and although Orophin had pointed it out in a manner more curious than critical, she became angry again, and snapped back at him.
" Well, I was not permitted to have long hair where I come from. Tis not my fault. If you do not like it, then go annoy someone elsewhere."
This time she could tell that she had gotten to the Elf. Orophin sat back on his heels with a genuinely puzzled and rather hurt expression. He stared at the sullen girl for several moments, his head cocked to one side, his brow furrowed as he tried to comprehend the strange being sitting cross- legged before him. Finally, he merely shrugged and folded his own legs under him, leaning back against the mallorn and breathing in the crisp, starlit air.
Both detachedly watched Rumil languidly make his way over to them, his face displaying a curious mixture of boredom and interest. He motioned for Orophin to move aside and immediately sat beside them in his oddly graceful manner, his movements balanced and controlled. He said nothing, simply allowing his eyes to travel around the flet, his hand loosely clasping a longbow which he casually draped over his knee. An awkward silence pervaded the moment, each of the trio not looking in the other's direction, a sparkling strand of meditation that slithered and dissolved into the moonlight.
Orophin once more tentatively pondered about the mysterious creature seated beside him, and hesitantly tried to catch her eye, to no avail. The only memory he retained from their first encounter was the awful sorrow and fear radiating from her whole being, from the depths of her lifestrands, her soul.
'Why will you not tell me what hurts you so?' Orophin pleaded silently as he regarded Danali with soft gaze. 'What were you fleeing, why were you running as if death was on your heels?'
'What pain, what sorrow has done this to you?'
Orophin slid noiselessly up to the morose girl and leaned against her back and over her shoulder as Rumil looked on with interest. Danali turned her head and drew in a tiny gasp at seeing the Elf so close, but made no other move, instead staring at him with a question in her eyes. Both remained transfixed for a time, curiously diving into the depths of the other's gaze, Orophin memorizing the girl by heart, Danali penetrating into his pure soul, an instant bond of enduring friendship forming between the two, though neither was aware of it.
Orophin broke away first, a radiant smile slowly creeping over his face. What he did next, Danali would never forget.
Orophin gently grasped the girl's upper arms, drew her toward him and hugged her. He held her tightly to his chest, his warm embrace melting all instinct of resistance in her, squeezing her so hard she could barely draw breath, but she cared not.
Orophin released her after a spell, still smiling, then picked himself up and stretched, his arms straightening over his head, his toes raising him off the ground. Danali glanced around to see if anyone else had seen the little display, but only Haldir gave any notice. She stared at him as he uncharacteristically half-smiled, lifted an eyebrow and winked before turning to speak to his companions. For the second time that evening, she blushed.
When Danali exhaled and leaned back again, she noticed Rumil staring at her, his penetrating pine-emerald eyes seeming to search her out to discover what they had missed the first time. To her surprise, he looked upon her kindly, almost gently, his gaze betraying no mockery or judgment. He turned away quickly after a few shimmering moments, a wall once more erected between the two, a mask disguising the emotions on his face. He briefly raised his hand to grasp Orophin's in a gesture of farewell, then swiftly rose and stalked off to sleep in a nearby flet.
Before he departed for duty, Orophin kneeled beside Danali and leaned to whisper in her ear, a kind, confident tone ringing through his voice, an endearing smile gracing his lips.
" I think your hair is beautiful, lady. Do not ever change it."
Before Danali could respond in any way, Orophin had disappeared to an unseen post. She let out a shaky sigh and smoothly unfolded her legs, her hands reaching to the untouched plate beside her, a new interest in the simple albeit nourishing rations heaped on it. She tentatively tasted the bread, the cheese, and soon ended up eating it all, for she had actually been on the verge of starvation. Once she had finished the meal, she pushed the empty plate away and raised her eyes to the heavens splashed with tiny, pale lights. Her mind wandered back to her fellow fugitive comrades, and she entertained thoughts on their whereabouts, her hands absently tracing invisible patterns in the grain of the wood beneath her as she recollected the memories springing from the well of her intricate mind. For the first time in her life, Danali felt a sense of peace envelop her in it's velvet wings, tranquility easing over her tired being and covering her eyes with sleep as it slowly began to mend her torn lifethreads.
Note: There's going to be more action soon, I promise, but right now I'm working on character development, so please keep reading. Orophin will give you a hug if you do. (
Uncertain Logic
The breeze sighed and gently intruded into Danali's thoughts as she reclined against the mallorn trunk behind her. Around her a small assembly of Elves were quietly eating dinner and conversing, their light voices blending with the faint whispers of the stars overhead. She heaved a sigh and wearily shrugged up against the slick bark, accidentally nudging the Elf sitting close beside her. Orophin immediately stopped shoving food in his mouth, turned toward her and smiled warmly, his silver-olive eyes dancing lightly. Danali blushed and resumed studying the linen strip wrapped tightly around her mutilated hand, turning it every which way and pretending she was observing play of moonlight on the cloth. She listened disinterestedly to the soft conversations being held around her, fragments of Elvish drifting about and wafting into the night sky. A small fire blazed in the center of the flet, it's warmth caressing Danali's face and hands, it's light shedding a muted glow on the congregated Elves and their dinners. Her own dinner lay untouched by her knee, her appetite mollified by sinking depression. What hope did she have of fitting in here? An overwhelming sense of apathy was replacing fear, and now she was wondering if it would be better for her to die.
Orophin's smooth voice interrupted her dark musings.
"I pray the food is to your liking, Lady?"
Danali slowly swung her head to face the concerned Elf, her expression totally blank, her eyes vacant. She dipped her chin once, twice. Orophin matched her steady gaze with his own, his face growing all of a sudden serious and almost menacing in the flickering firelight, shadows swirling about his cheeks and eyes.
" Of course, one does not know if something is good unless she tries it, no?"
Danali's head snapped up at the rebuke, her tongue at the ready with a searing reply, her eyes flaring, only to be met with a morsel of bread and a mirthful chuckle from Orophin. A gentle smile graced his face once more, and he raised his eyebrows in query, inviting her to take the bread he offered. Danali glared at the bemused Elf and lowered her head again, allowing her shoulder-length hair to swing around her face and tracing the stitching of her leggings with her finger.
Undaunted, Orophin replaced the bread on the girl's plate and broke off a piece of cheese to tempt her stubborn appetite. He rested the back of his hand on her folded knee and waited patiently for her to accept the creamy yellow food.
At the touch of Orophin's hand, Danali felt her temper begin to flare up, but managed to grasp a few strands of control and lift her head. Her eyes locked on Orophin while she firmly pushed the offending hand away from her leg, then pressed her lips together and crossed her arms, assuming a posture of defiance, the invisible walls protecting her from further attack.
'Like a child she is,' Orophin thought, then straightened himself as he remembered that she practically was a child. He glanced at her plate and grabbed an apple slice, then, with the patience of the immortal, leaned even closer to Danali and waited hopefully, apple in outstretched hand, for the gloomy young woman to notice.
He did not wait long.
Danali jerked her head up, calmly plucked the apple slice from between Orophin's fingers and just as calmly tossed it over her shoulder to the forest floor far below.
Orophin's eyes followed the forsaken fruit's trajectory until the darkness prohibited him to see further, his patience wavering a little as he regarded the stoic girl who refused to meet his gaze, her shoulders hunched as she drew her nightshaded cloak tighter about her shivering body, her bitter eyes staring straight ahead, seeing nothing. He felt eyes on his own back, and glanced behind to meet Haldir's dancing eyes, their grey light registering amusement; he had obviously been enjoying the tense interaction between the two. Orophin wanly smiled back and turned around to expend one last effort. He decided to make an attempt at humour, not bothering to consider the obvious fact that Danali was probably not in the best of moods for jesting.
" In Lorien, the law states that all who try to starve themselves shall be tied upside down to a branch and forced to listen to the entire history of the world."
Danali inhaled deeply and closed her eyes, attempting to retain her tenuous hold on control and shakily succeeding. The Elf was beginning to irritate her beyond all else, regardless of his intentions. She summoned up a supernatural will from somewhere, rendered her facial features expressionless and prayed that she would keep reign over her tongue. Her voice dripped annoyance.
" You really do think you're funny, don't you?"
Orophin shrugged the biting question off easily and grinned charmingly.
"Tis what my brothers tell me, and I do not dare to question their superior wisdom and excellent taste."
Danali could feel the smoke beginning to trickle out of her head.
"I beg to differ with your ever so wonderful brothers. Now kindly leave me be."
Orophin sprang back with his usual disarming affectation, still smiling cheerily, and decided to change the subject. He gently stroked a lock of Danali's hair and tugged it teasingly.
" Your hair. it's so short. I have not seen a lady with such short hair before."
Exasperated, Danali sighed, carefully gathered her hair in one hand and swept it around her head to the opposite shoulder, away from Orophin. She had been self-conscious about it since meeting the Elves with their long, shimmering tresses, and although Orophin had pointed it out in a manner more curious than critical, she became angry again, and snapped back at him.
" Well, I was not permitted to have long hair where I come from. Tis not my fault. If you do not like it, then go annoy someone elsewhere."
This time she could tell that she had gotten to the Elf. Orophin sat back on his heels with a genuinely puzzled and rather hurt expression. He stared at the sullen girl for several moments, his head cocked to one side, his brow furrowed as he tried to comprehend the strange being sitting cross- legged before him. Finally, he merely shrugged and folded his own legs under him, leaning back against the mallorn and breathing in the crisp, starlit air.
Both detachedly watched Rumil languidly make his way over to them, his face displaying a curious mixture of boredom and interest. He motioned for Orophin to move aside and immediately sat beside them in his oddly graceful manner, his movements balanced and controlled. He said nothing, simply allowing his eyes to travel around the flet, his hand loosely clasping a longbow which he casually draped over his knee. An awkward silence pervaded the moment, each of the trio not looking in the other's direction, a sparkling strand of meditation that slithered and dissolved into the moonlight.
Orophin once more tentatively pondered about the mysterious creature seated beside him, and hesitantly tried to catch her eye, to no avail. The only memory he retained from their first encounter was the awful sorrow and fear radiating from her whole being, from the depths of her lifestrands, her soul.
'Why will you not tell me what hurts you so?' Orophin pleaded silently as he regarded Danali with soft gaze. 'What were you fleeing, why were you running as if death was on your heels?'
'What pain, what sorrow has done this to you?'
Orophin slid noiselessly up to the morose girl and leaned against her back and over her shoulder as Rumil looked on with interest. Danali turned her head and drew in a tiny gasp at seeing the Elf so close, but made no other move, instead staring at him with a question in her eyes. Both remained transfixed for a time, curiously diving into the depths of the other's gaze, Orophin memorizing the girl by heart, Danali penetrating into his pure soul, an instant bond of enduring friendship forming between the two, though neither was aware of it.
Orophin broke away first, a radiant smile slowly creeping over his face. What he did next, Danali would never forget.
Orophin gently grasped the girl's upper arms, drew her toward him and hugged her. He held her tightly to his chest, his warm embrace melting all instinct of resistance in her, squeezing her so hard she could barely draw breath, but she cared not.
Orophin released her after a spell, still smiling, then picked himself up and stretched, his arms straightening over his head, his toes raising him off the ground. Danali glanced around to see if anyone else had seen the little display, but only Haldir gave any notice. She stared at him as he uncharacteristically half-smiled, lifted an eyebrow and winked before turning to speak to his companions. For the second time that evening, she blushed.
When Danali exhaled and leaned back again, she noticed Rumil staring at her, his penetrating pine-emerald eyes seeming to search her out to discover what they had missed the first time. To her surprise, he looked upon her kindly, almost gently, his gaze betraying no mockery or judgment. He turned away quickly after a few shimmering moments, a wall once more erected between the two, a mask disguising the emotions on his face. He briefly raised his hand to grasp Orophin's in a gesture of farewell, then swiftly rose and stalked off to sleep in a nearby flet.
Before he departed for duty, Orophin kneeled beside Danali and leaned to whisper in her ear, a kind, confident tone ringing through his voice, an endearing smile gracing his lips.
" I think your hair is beautiful, lady. Do not ever change it."
Before Danali could respond in any way, Orophin had disappeared to an unseen post. She let out a shaky sigh and smoothly unfolded her legs, her hands reaching to the untouched plate beside her, a new interest in the simple albeit nourishing rations heaped on it. She tentatively tasted the bread, the cheese, and soon ended up eating it all, for she had actually been on the verge of starvation. Once she had finished the meal, she pushed the empty plate away and raised her eyes to the heavens splashed with tiny, pale lights. Her mind wandered back to her fellow fugitive comrades, and she entertained thoughts on their whereabouts, her hands absently tracing invisible patterns in the grain of the wood beneath her as she recollected the memories springing from the well of her intricate mind. For the first time in her life, Danali felt a sense of peace envelop her in it's velvet wings, tranquility easing over her tired being and covering her eyes with sleep as it slowly began to mend her torn lifethreads.
Note: There's going to be more action soon, I promise, but right now I'm working on character development, so please keep reading. Orophin will give you a hug if you do. (
