~A Rose by Any Other Name~
Chapter Eight
After a few hours, Ascadholiel had calmed down enough to now walk beside Legolas. She clung to his arm, but no longer trembled as much and only jumped when a sound went off that she hadn't been expecting.
Legolas spoke to her quietly the whole time, only loud enough for her to hear, sharing tales of his childhood. All the tales were based in the forest, in the bright sunlight to try to take her mind off of where they were.
Ascadholiel jumped again and clung to him tighter as one of their group accidentally kicked a rock, sending it clattering off for a few moments.
Legolas hushed her gently before asking, "Melamin? Why is it that you are not afraid of the dark, yet you are afraid of these mines? I know why they do not sit well with me, but you are not an elf."
The now trembling human girl sighed and whispered so that only Legolas' sharp elven ears could pick it up. "You're tactless and your timing on some things is really shotty my love, but I will tell you. You know that my father used to beat me... and touch me, but... it goes deeper than that as well."
This made Legolas' eyebrows crease together as a mask of anger drifted across his face, though he did not let her see, and let her go on.
"If I cried out during any of this, or really for any reason that he might have had that was valid to him, he'd punish me further. At first it started with him locking me in the closet with no food for and hour, and then it went to days. Then he'd beat me for the mess I'd have left in there and make me clean it up before anything else was done.
"Then, when that got boring and he didn't think it was punishment enough, he built a box, a coffin that was so tight that I couldn't even lift my arms or bend my legs. He'd lock me in it and then shove it down a hole that he had dug in our cellar. He'd leave me there for days, and I'd have no clue if he'd forgotten about me."
She started shaking and sobbing again and Legolas halted and pulled her into his arms. He nodded and Boromir and Aragorn to go on past them and signaled that they would catch up in a moment. He rocked her gently as they stood there. He was amazed at the obvious toll that everything combined, from the memories to this place to the loss of meds, was taking on her. If these mines were bad for him, then it was nothing compared to what she had been through and what she was going through now.
Ascadholiel swallowed a little and then went on talking in a hushed voice as they stood there. "The worst time though, was when my dad took me to the Shannandowa valley to see the caverns there for my birthday. I was so excited and I had just turned eight years old.
"We went down with the tour group and at one stop we all made, I saw something shiny in the distance. I begged my father to stay for a little longer when the group moved on, to see if I could make out what it was. Daddy seemed a little mad, but stayed anyway. He even told me he'd stay right there while I wandered off the path to go see what it was and that I wouldn't get in trouble even though the tour guide had said to stay on the path and with the group. I gave him a hug and ran to see what it was.
"It was farther than I had thought and it took me a few minuets and some climbing to get there. I screamed when I did though. Light had reflected off the bones of a little indian girl that must have gotten trapped and killed by the bolder that was laying on her skeleton. She had been my size, if not a little small.
"I looked back, and my daddy was gone. He'd left me as soon as I had gone running. What's more, I couldn't find my way back to the path, or even the path that I had used to get there. I wandered around for a long time that day, still not finding my way out, almost tripping and falling in holes and cliffs that I couldn't see the bottoms of, that could have gone down thousands of feet if not more.
"That's when and earthquake hit, and the lights around me burst. The noise was so loud. Then there was darkness, and I was alone, wandering in the dark, under a mountain, not knowing if they would ever find me.
"They did find me eventually though. They took me home and my daddy hugged me and was so happy to see me. Then the nice people left, and he changed. He beat me so bad that I had to be put nin the hospital, but at least I was out in the light and people knew where I was, and a mountain couldn't fall on me.
"The worst part about it all, was being trapped there in the dark in a cave, deep in the earth, and alone. All alone. For four days." Her voice was haunted and still thick with tears, her eyes staring wide as she was caught up in the memories her current surroundings only enforcing it.
Legolas picked her up again and she clung to him like before. His elven speed quickly caught them up to the others. He leaned his head close to hers and whispered in her ear. "Lay your head against my chest. Hear only my heartbeat and look only at my face. You are safe in my arms. No... more. You are safe in my heart."
Ascadholiel's old mischievous streak thankfully reared up. "And my heart will go on and on. I'll never let go Jack!" She said melodramatically.
Legolas cocked a finely arched eyebrow. "Another pop-culture reference?"
"Oh yeah." She said immediately.
They both shared a very quiet laugh and though she was still scared, she felt much better now that she had told Legolas that bit about her past. She also did what he told her to do and listened to his heart, staring up at his beautiful face as he looked and was alert to all around them.
Legolas whispered to her, "I'm glad to hear your laugh Ascadholiel. I am glad that even though we are in this darkness, your heart will still allow it."
Ascadholiel smiled and sighed, gazing at his sculpted features as she toyed with the small braid hanging behind his left ear. "Well, the company is pleasant enough to allow it."
"I am sure that it is not my company that truly allows that. You must simply be thinking of flattering me because I am carrying you."
Ascadholiel narrowed her eyes for a moment. 'So he seeks to tease me, and with my own game as well. Very well. The game is on.' Out loud she said, "Well my dear elf, if you are insinuating that you are tired of carrying me or tire of my humble company, then I am sure that I could search for this, 'much better company', you spoke of and see if they will carry me. Perhaps Boromir would..."
The elf shifted her around in his arms suddenly, enough so that he could cover her mouth with his hand and muffle her words. "Say one more word, human, and I'll throttle you." Both their eyes sparkled as he imitated her words from a few days ago. In the first place, you're about as humble as a spoiled cat. In the second place, I hardly find your company even close to tiring. Third, at this point I would rather kiss... well... not a deadly sea snake, but I'd be honored to kiss you milady."
Ascadholiel smiled brightly and wrapped one arm tighter around his shoulders, her other hand traveled up to his smooth cheek and stayed there, her thumb caressed his high cheekbone and the tip of her fingers ran over the delicate point of his ear. She looked into his blue eyes and whispered, "Then I am honored to honor you."
She tilted her face up as he lowered his, their lips meeting in a sweet, slow kiss before they parted with smiles on their faces. Legolas had a much happier look on his face as he looked once again, alertly around them.
Ascadholiel laid her head back down again his chest and sighed happily, her hand now playing with the fine hairs at the nape of Legolas' neck. No longer did she notice the darkness they were walking into. No longer did she feel weak for being scared. Now she had her strength with her.
**********
Camp that night, or at least they all assumed it was night, was a sober affair. Gandalf had been confused for a time as to which way they should go. After that, Ascadholiel had settled for walking on her own again.
Now the fellowship sat around a small fire that was just big enough to ward off the chill and to cook, but not draw attention to them or signal any creatures that could be living in the dark depths. There wasn't much talking at first, as everyone seemed to feel the weight of the earth pressing around them.
Ascadholiel sat as close as she could to the fire trying to ward off the chill as she waited for Legolas to finish scouting ahead with Aragorn and return. She was still shaking from the effects of being in the mines and the hobbits tried there best to comfort and cheer her.
For some reason though, the topic went in the complete opposite direction and intent than they had meant for it to.
Ascadholiel found herself for the second time telling about how her father had left her in the caverns.
Everyone else was once again thrown into shock at what this young woman had been through in her short life. Gimli shook his head. "How can a father be so cruel to his child? Even we dwarves who live deep in the mountains know better than that."
Ascadholiel shook her head, grateful for the whispered conversation which broke the silence. "I don't know. All I know is, when I was five, my mother, who wasn't a much better parent, left me on his doorstep with some sort of proof of paternity and custody paper for me, signing all right over to him.
"Life was never easy with him, but he didn't touch me sexually until I was eight. It only got worse from there. I was so relieved when I started dating Cody, if only for the fact that I could go out and get away from my father. I was sixteen by then."
Boromir nodded. "So this Cody was good to you then. You were happy with him." The man furrowed his brow and frowned when he saw her shake her head.
"Only for the first month or two. He was indeed very good to me during that time. I could tell he wanted sex, but he respected me when I said no and wouldn't allow him to touch me like that.
"Then one night we had a date and I came downstairs to leave to meet him, only to find that he had already been there for an hour and he and my father were laughing at some pictures. I knew they were pictures that my father had taken of me. They were of times like, when he would make me clean the house naked, or when he was touching me or making me touch myself for him to watch."
Ascadholiel shuddered and stared into the fire. Pippin took her hand and held it, no one saying a thing, knowing that she had to talk about this in order to begin healing from it. "I knew then that my father had told Cody. Cody looked up at me then, and I could tell right then and there from his eyes that things had changed.
"Cody stood up from the couch and hit me in the face, knocking back into a table and lamp that broke and gave me a scar on my back. He said that I was a liar and a whore, a little slut. He said that I was a bitch for playing the demure virgin with him, when, if I could give it to my father, I should be giving it to him as well.
"My father told him that he should just take me up to my room right then and show me what my place, as a woman, was in the relationship. So Cody did. He dragged me upstairs by the hair after kicking me and raped me in my own room.
"Cody was over every night after that and was just as bad as my father if not sometimes worse. A few months later I found out I was pregnant, which didn't overly surprise me. I happily told Cody and my father and showed them the proof, thinking that they wouldn't hit me anymore because of the baby. I was wrong. They just didn't hit my stomach. Everything else was fair game.
"And you know, even though I didn't love Cody, I loved that baby. I loved that baby with all my heart and soul, more than I ever thought possible. That baby, my baby was my whole world and for the first time, gave me a reason for living. It was part of me and it was innocent. It couldn't help who it's parents were or how it was conceived, and it wasn't the one hurting me, so who was I not to love my own flesh and blood? How could I not?"
Tears wear steadily flowing down Ascadholiel's face and she closed her eyes in a pain that only a mother would know. She went on, her voice shaking with the tears, her blue-green eyes still closed as she told these men something she had never uttered to anyone. "A few weeks later, I was walking down the stairs and had a bout of dizziness from morning sickness, and fell down the stairs. When I woke up later in the hospital, cramping so badly I couldn't even scream, I was told that I had lost my precious baby.
"I was so upset that I tried to kill myself, and mind you, not for the first time." She rubbed her wrists absently, where the others could now see the thin white scars. She went on, eyes still closed, so not seeing the looks of growing horror. Even Gandalf had a half mournful look to him as his mind absorbed the horrendous tale of her past.
"The night I was finally released from the hospital, Cody beat me worse than ever, blaming me openly, saying that I had fallen down the stairs on purpose. That I had killed, his, baby just to spite him and that we were going to try again that very night. He said he would try until he got me pregnant again, then he'd lock me in a room until I delivered it. Then he'd kill me and if the baby was a boy, he'd raise him to be just like him. If it was a girl, he'd either sell her, or teach her to be a good little whole, better than her mother, and make him money.
"That was about three years ago. I finally got away six months later, ran away, and have been hiding ever since. The last I knew, they were still trying everything they could to find me. I don't know what brought me here, but what if it brought them too? What if they find me?" She had by now tucked her knees up to her chest, her arms wrapped tightly around them as she said the last.
Ascadholiel started as a voice behind her growled out, "Then there will be much blood spilt."
**********
A.N.: Yep! It's that time again, time to throw your keyboards at Celesta- chan for giving you another cliffhanger. Once again, my thanks for all those who have reviewed. I really love hearing from you all. I know this chapter and the last one as well, weren't really exciting, but I really did need to develop her past. And why such a fucked up past you might ask? Because I have a lot of problems and need to fucking vent that's why! *evil laughter* But other than that, it makes her stronger. This I'm thinking will be the last chapter with her past in it, because, that was basically it in a nutshell. Well then people, The next chapter will be out.... Well fuck, when I damn well finish writing the bloody thing, if I haven't already, in which case, it'll be out in a few days. Also a warning... prepare for mush! There's going to be plenty of it in future chapters!!!!!!!!!! Well, once again I'm sorry this part took so long to get out, I'll try to be a little more swift with the other parts. BTW I was at the FIRST showing of Return of the King in my area. you know, the one at 12:00 midnight on the 17th!!! WWOOOOOOHHHHHOOOOOOOOOO!!!! I was dressed full out as an elf, complete with ears! And I have now been dubbed, by a hobbit, Frodo non the less, as GALADRIEL!!! YES!!!! It is spiffy!!!!! And for all those who haven't seen it yet... LEGOLAS IN PRINCE GARB!!!! COMPLETE WITH SILVER CIRCLET AND SLIGHTLY DIFFERENT HAIR!!!!!!OH IT IS GOOOOOOOOD!!! BTW.. Most of this I already had written out before rotk came out, so it really has no baring on that right now anyway. next chapter WILL BE A LEMON!!! So be forewarned. Enjoy and FEEDBACK!!! Namarrie!!!
~Celesta Hellewise Harman
Chapter Eight
After a few hours, Ascadholiel had calmed down enough to now walk beside Legolas. She clung to his arm, but no longer trembled as much and only jumped when a sound went off that she hadn't been expecting.
Legolas spoke to her quietly the whole time, only loud enough for her to hear, sharing tales of his childhood. All the tales were based in the forest, in the bright sunlight to try to take her mind off of where they were.
Ascadholiel jumped again and clung to him tighter as one of their group accidentally kicked a rock, sending it clattering off for a few moments.
Legolas hushed her gently before asking, "Melamin? Why is it that you are not afraid of the dark, yet you are afraid of these mines? I know why they do not sit well with me, but you are not an elf."
The now trembling human girl sighed and whispered so that only Legolas' sharp elven ears could pick it up. "You're tactless and your timing on some things is really shotty my love, but I will tell you. You know that my father used to beat me... and touch me, but... it goes deeper than that as well."
This made Legolas' eyebrows crease together as a mask of anger drifted across his face, though he did not let her see, and let her go on.
"If I cried out during any of this, or really for any reason that he might have had that was valid to him, he'd punish me further. At first it started with him locking me in the closet with no food for and hour, and then it went to days. Then he'd beat me for the mess I'd have left in there and make me clean it up before anything else was done.
"Then, when that got boring and he didn't think it was punishment enough, he built a box, a coffin that was so tight that I couldn't even lift my arms or bend my legs. He'd lock me in it and then shove it down a hole that he had dug in our cellar. He'd leave me there for days, and I'd have no clue if he'd forgotten about me."
She started shaking and sobbing again and Legolas halted and pulled her into his arms. He nodded and Boromir and Aragorn to go on past them and signaled that they would catch up in a moment. He rocked her gently as they stood there. He was amazed at the obvious toll that everything combined, from the memories to this place to the loss of meds, was taking on her. If these mines were bad for him, then it was nothing compared to what she had been through and what she was going through now.
Ascadholiel swallowed a little and then went on talking in a hushed voice as they stood there. "The worst time though, was when my dad took me to the Shannandowa valley to see the caverns there for my birthday. I was so excited and I had just turned eight years old.
"We went down with the tour group and at one stop we all made, I saw something shiny in the distance. I begged my father to stay for a little longer when the group moved on, to see if I could make out what it was. Daddy seemed a little mad, but stayed anyway. He even told me he'd stay right there while I wandered off the path to go see what it was and that I wouldn't get in trouble even though the tour guide had said to stay on the path and with the group. I gave him a hug and ran to see what it was.
"It was farther than I had thought and it took me a few minuets and some climbing to get there. I screamed when I did though. Light had reflected off the bones of a little indian girl that must have gotten trapped and killed by the bolder that was laying on her skeleton. She had been my size, if not a little small.
"I looked back, and my daddy was gone. He'd left me as soon as I had gone running. What's more, I couldn't find my way back to the path, or even the path that I had used to get there. I wandered around for a long time that day, still not finding my way out, almost tripping and falling in holes and cliffs that I couldn't see the bottoms of, that could have gone down thousands of feet if not more.
"That's when and earthquake hit, and the lights around me burst. The noise was so loud. Then there was darkness, and I was alone, wandering in the dark, under a mountain, not knowing if they would ever find me.
"They did find me eventually though. They took me home and my daddy hugged me and was so happy to see me. Then the nice people left, and he changed. He beat me so bad that I had to be put nin the hospital, but at least I was out in the light and people knew where I was, and a mountain couldn't fall on me.
"The worst part about it all, was being trapped there in the dark in a cave, deep in the earth, and alone. All alone. For four days." Her voice was haunted and still thick with tears, her eyes staring wide as she was caught up in the memories her current surroundings only enforcing it.
Legolas picked her up again and she clung to him like before. His elven speed quickly caught them up to the others. He leaned his head close to hers and whispered in her ear. "Lay your head against my chest. Hear only my heartbeat and look only at my face. You are safe in my arms. No... more. You are safe in my heart."
Ascadholiel's old mischievous streak thankfully reared up. "And my heart will go on and on. I'll never let go Jack!" She said melodramatically.
Legolas cocked a finely arched eyebrow. "Another pop-culture reference?"
"Oh yeah." She said immediately.
They both shared a very quiet laugh and though she was still scared, she felt much better now that she had told Legolas that bit about her past. She also did what he told her to do and listened to his heart, staring up at his beautiful face as he looked and was alert to all around them.
Legolas whispered to her, "I'm glad to hear your laugh Ascadholiel. I am glad that even though we are in this darkness, your heart will still allow it."
Ascadholiel smiled and sighed, gazing at his sculpted features as she toyed with the small braid hanging behind his left ear. "Well, the company is pleasant enough to allow it."
"I am sure that it is not my company that truly allows that. You must simply be thinking of flattering me because I am carrying you."
Ascadholiel narrowed her eyes for a moment. 'So he seeks to tease me, and with my own game as well. Very well. The game is on.' Out loud she said, "Well my dear elf, if you are insinuating that you are tired of carrying me or tire of my humble company, then I am sure that I could search for this, 'much better company', you spoke of and see if they will carry me. Perhaps Boromir would..."
The elf shifted her around in his arms suddenly, enough so that he could cover her mouth with his hand and muffle her words. "Say one more word, human, and I'll throttle you." Both their eyes sparkled as he imitated her words from a few days ago. In the first place, you're about as humble as a spoiled cat. In the second place, I hardly find your company even close to tiring. Third, at this point I would rather kiss... well... not a deadly sea snake, but I'd be honored to kiss you milady."
Ascadholiel smiled brightly and wrapped one arm tighter around his shoulders, her other hand traveled up to his smooth cheek and stayed there, her thumb caressed his high cheekbone and the tip of her fingers ran over the delicate point of his ear. She looked into his blue eyes and whispered, "Then I am honored to honor you."
She tilted her face up as he lowered his, their lips meeting in a sweet, slow kiss before they parted with smiles on their faces. Legolas had a much happier look on his face as he looked once again, alertly around them.
Ascadholiel laid her head back down again his chest and sighed happily, her hand now playing with the fine hairs at the nape of Legolas' neck. No longer did she notice the darkness they were walking into. No longer did she feel weak for being scared. Now she had her strength with her.
**********
Camp that night, or at least they all assumed it was night, was a sober affair. Gandalf had been confused for a time as to which way they should go. After that, Ascadholiel had settled for walking on her own again.
Now the fellowship sat around a small fire that was just big enough to ward off the chill and to cook, but not draw attention to them or signal any creatures that could be living in the dark depths. There wasn't much talking at first, as everyone seemed to feel the weight of the earth pressing around them.
Ascadholiel sat as close as she could to the fire trying to ward off the chill as she waited for Legolas to finish scouting ahead with Aragorn and return. She was still shaking from the effects of being in the mines and the hobbits tried there best to comfort and cheer her.
For some reason though, the topic went in the complete opposite direction and intent than they had meant for it to.
Ascadholiel found herself for the second time telling about how her father had left her in the caverns.
Everyone else was once again thrown into shock at what this young woman had been through in her short life. Gimli shook his head. "How can a father be so cruel to his child? Even we dwarves who live deep in the mountains know better than that."
Ascadholiel shook her head, grateful for the whispered conversation which broke the silence. "I don't know. All I know is, when I was five, my mother, who wasn't a much better parent, left me on his doorstep with some sort of proof of paternity and custody paper for me, signing all right over to him.
"Life was never easy with him, but he didn't touch me sexually until I was eight. It only got worse from there. I was so relieved when I started dating Cody, if only for the fact that I could go out and get away from my father. I was sixteen by then."
Boromir nodded. "So this Cody was good to you then. You were happy with him." The man furrowed his brow and frowned when he saw her shake her head.
"Only for the first month or two. He was indeed very good to me during that time. I could tell he wanted sex, but he respected me when I said no and wouldn't allow him to touch me like that.
"Then one night we had a date and I came downstairs to leave to meet him, only to find that he had already been there for an hour and he and my father were laughing at some pictures. I knew they were pictures that my father had taken of me. They were of times like, when he would make me clean the house naked, or when he was touching me or making me touch myself for him to watch."
Ascadholiel shuddered and stared into the fire. Pippin took her hand and held it, no one saying a thing, knowing that she had to talk about this in order to begin healing from it. "I knew then that my father had told Cody. Cody looked up at me then, and I could tell right then and there from his eyes that things had changed.
"Cody stood up from the couch and hit me in the face, knocking back into a table and lamp that broke and gave me a scar on my back. He said that I was a liar and a whore, a little slut. He said that I was a bitch for playing the demure virgin with him, when, if I could give it to my father, I should be giving it to him as well.
"My father told him that he should just take me up to my room right then and show me what my place, as a woman, was in the relationship. So Cody did. He dragged me upstairs by the hair after kicking me and raped me in my own room.
"Cody was over every night after that and was just as bad as my father if not sometimes worse. A few months later I found out I was pregnant, which didn't overly surprise me. I happily told Cody and my father and showed them the proof, thinking that they wouldn't hit me anymore because of the baby. I was wrong. They just didn't hit my stomach. Everything else was fair game.
"And you know, even though I didn't love Cody, I loved that baby. I loved that baby with all my heart and soul, more than I ever thought possible. That baby, my baby was my whole world and for the first time, gave me a reason for living. It was part of me and it was innocent. It couldn't help who it's parents were or how it was conceived, and it wasn't the one hurting me, so who was I not to love my own flesh and blood? How could I not?"
Tears wear steadily flowing down Ascadholiel's face and she closed her eyes in a pain that only a mother would know. She went on, her voice shaking with the tears, her blue-green eyes still closed as she told these men something she had never uttered to anyone. "A few weeks later, I was walking down the stairs and had a bout of dizziness from morning sickness, and fell down the stairs. When I woke up later in the hospital, cramping so badly I couldn't even scream, I was told that I had lost my precious baby.
"I was so upset that I tried to kill myself, and mind you, not for the first time." She rubbed her wrists absently, where the others could now see the thin white scars. She went on, eyes still closed, so not seeing the looks of growing horror. Even Gandalf had a half mournful look to him as his mind absorbed the horrendous tale of her past.
"The night I was finally released from the hospital, Cody beat me worse than ever, blaming me openly, saying that I had fallen down the stairs on purpose. That I had killed, his, baby just to spite him and that we were going to try again that very night. He said he would try until he got me pregnant again, then he'd lock me in a room until I delivered it. Then he'd kill me and if the baby was a boy, he'd raise him to be just like him. If it was a girl, he'd either sell her, or teach her to be a good little whole, better than her mother, and make him money.
"That was about three years ago. I finally got away six months later, ran away, and have been hiding ever since. The last I knew, they were still trying everything they could to find me. I don't know what brought me here, but what if it brought them too? What if they find me?" She had by now tucked her knees up to her chest, her arms wrapped tightly around them as she said the last.
Ascadholiel started as a voice behind her growled out, "Then there will be much blood spilt."
**********
A.N.: Yep! It's that time again, time to throw your keyboards at Celesta- chan for giving you another cliffhanger. Once again, my thanks for all those who have reviewed. I really love hearing from you all. I know this chapter and the last one as well, weren't really exciting, but I really did need to develop her past. And why such a fucked up past you might ask? Because I have a lot of problems and need to fucking vent that's why! *evil laughter* But other than that, it makes her stronger. This I'm thinking will be the last chapter with her past in it, because, that was basically it in a nutshell. Well then people, The next chapter will be out.... Well fuck, when I damn well finish writing the bloody thing, if I haven't already, in which case, it'll be out in a few days. Also a warning... prepare for mush! There's going to be plenty of it in future chapters!!!!!!!!!! Well, once again I'm sorry this part took so long to get out, I'll try to be a little more swift with the other parts. BTW I was at the FIRST showing of Return of the King in my area. you know, the one at 12:00 midnight on the 17th!!! WWOOOOOOHHHHHOOOOOOOOOO!!!! I was dressed full out as an elf, complete with ears! And I have now been dubbed, by a hobbit, Frodo non the less, as GALADRIEL!!! YES!!!! It is spiffy!!!!! And for all those who haven't seen it yet... LEGOLAS IN PRINCE GARB!!!! COMPLETE WITH SILVER CIRCLET AND SLIGHTLY DIFFERENT HAIR!!!!!!OH IT IS GOOOOOOOOD!!! BTW.. Most of this I already had written out before rotk came out, so it really has no baring on that right now anyway. next chapter WILL BE A LEMON!!! So be forewarned. Enjoy and FEEDBACK!!! Namarrie!!!
~Celesta Hellewise Harman
