Disclaimer: I do not own Middle-earth. It belongs to J.R.R. Tolkien.
Author's Note:
...I hate most fangirls. Unfortunately, there's one in this story. At the moment, no, it's not Narcissus.
...BLECH!
~Naheka
Wind and Fire
Chapter 2: The Lord of the Smiles
He collapsed against the door, sliding down slowly as he slapped his hands against his forehead.
"Good Gods! My name is Oni!" he thought angrily to himself. "Not 'Roni'! It makes me sound like some sort of foreign food! The stupidity of these people is so great that I can still smell it!" After sitting in frustrated silence for a long while, he pushed himself up from the floor and made his way over to the window, quickly drawing the curtains open. "I've got to get out of this place immediately! What a waste of--" He flung open the shutters, only to be hit in the face by a ferocious blast of wind and snow. He seethed at the cold bite it clamped on his skin. He slammed the window shut. "...Never mind."
Departing the window sill, he began to pace around the back of the room, beside the candle light on the table. His black cloak billowed in a sort of non-existent wind as he walked back and forth. "Stop it!" He stamped on the end of his cloak again in an attempt to get it to stop wavering. "Stupid thing. I hate it when it does that. There isn't even a bloody breeze in this forsaken place!"
He spun on his heel and flopped down on the springy bed covered in moderate blue sheets, staring up at the roof. "What do I do now?" The roof was made up of several long, trim, wooden planks. "I cannot even remember what I'm doing here..." As time passed by in silence, he started to count the spots on the ceiling. "I guess I'll have to lodge myself here until I get more information." There were exactly thirty-six spots on the two by two yard square above him. He knew. He had counted at least fourteen times. "I'm sleepy..."
By the time he had pondered this last thought, Telperion, the Moon carrier, had begun to depart the East, as Arien, the Sun, approached the shores of the Grey Havens. The sky was cerulean again, a sign of dawn approaching. A new day had begun.
~*~
"He's neurotic or something. It's kinda' funny, actually."
"Neurotic doesn't quite sound too funny to me. But I suppose I could agree with you."
Aoreth* and Narcissus stopped together at the last door at the end of the hall. Aoreth, blonde and pale, sighed heavily and knocked on the door, her light brown eyes lit with concern as she and her friend of identical figure stepped back, awaiting for the guest to open the door. There was no sign of movement, let alone life, behind the door.
"You wanna' go in?" whispered Aoreth, shoving Narcissus forward. She shook her head vigorously.
"No! I don't want to disturb him!"
"We have to." Aoreth forced Narcissus' hand to turn the handle. "Master Gladseed wants him up to talk for business. You don't want to risk losing your job, do you?" At this notion, Narcissus groaned and slowly opened the door, allowing herself to take a peek in, first. Aoreth poked her head in soon afterward. She gasped. Narcissus choked in attempt to restrain another laugh.
"He's lying in his own drool," she muttered with a grin.
Aoreth, gaping at 'Roni' with an open mouth, put a hand over her heart. "Narcissus! Look at him! He's sleeping like an angel!"
"He wasn't exactly an angel last night," thought Narcissus. Yes, 'Roni' had fallen into a very deep sleep, deep enough to prevent himself from drowning in his own spit. Yet Aoreth was gazing at the long, silky black hair that spilled over his dun shoulders and face. It was at least as long enough to reach his waist. But suddenly, the door was pulled shut, and Narcissus was thrown back.
"What did you do that for?" she sputtered at Aoreth, who had sunk to the ground against the wall, looking flustered.
More like star-struck. "You never told me he was so adorable!" Narcissus groaned again and shook her head as Aoreth's eyes widened. "He seems so tall and dark and--"
"Psychotic," drawled Narcissus to finish her sentence.
"Hey!" Aoreth sprung from the wall and stamped in front of her co-waiter's face. "You're just jealous because... because I like him better than you do."
"Goodness. We move rather fast in relationships, now don't we?"
"Stop it!"
"Will someone please explain to me why I find two women arguing at my door at 7:00 in the morning?"
Aoreth and Narcissus whipped around. 'Roni' was standing in the doorway, looking very displeased to be awoken so rudely. He glared sinisterly at both of them. "Is there something so important that I have to be disturbed to be notified?" Neither of them spoke, for Aoreth's stunned grip on Narcissus' wrist was so tight that she had to hide her seethed teeth between her lips. "Well? No?" He began to withdraw back into his chambers. "I should complain for such terrible service."
"Wait!" cried Aoreth.
'Roni' poked his head out of the doorway again. "What?"
Aoreth had obviously frozen in place. "We apologize, sir," said Narcissus, also trying to conceal her attempts to wriggle free from Aoreth's grip. "But we've come to--ow! Get off, Aoreth! -- to tell you that our inn-keeper would like to talk to you, concerning last night's events."
'Roni' lazily raised an eyebrow. "Really?" He yawned widely, and the heavy marks under his eyes became even more noticeable. "So, why can't I just finish sleeping here quietly and by myself before I speak with your alpha?"
"I wouldn't know," sighed Aoreth dreamily. "We should just let you go in peace, shouldn't we, Narcissus? You can come talk to the Master, later." 'Roni' looked almost frightened at the pathetic waitress' gleaming, enormous eyes. "Have a good morning."
Muttering something cross under his breath, he gave them both one last glare before slamming the door shut.
"Aoreth!" cried Narcissus, arms flailing as she began pacing up and down the hallway quickly. "You idiot! How could you do such a thing?"
"Oh, shut up," said Aoreth in the same, dense, lost tone. "I think he's just fine sleeping until he likes."
Yet surprisingly, as the two waitresses began to walk back down the corridor, 'Roni' hadn't woken up again as Narcissus took the time to hit her head against the wall. For some reason, she thought she needed it.
~*~
"So..."
Oni's dark eyes darted quickly back and forth, several times to the window, several times to the door, and only once or twice to the cheery, portly man that sat behind a desk, piled with yellow parchment forms and ink bottles. He squinted slightly at the pale sunlight that streamed down through the curtains to his left. But the gray sky of winter gave him some comfort, whatever he believed comfort was.
"Sit, will you, Mister Roni?" chortled the man, gesturing to a wooden stool beside the desk.
"My name is Oni," he grunted in reply.
"Ah, most sincere apologies, sire." The man kept the blissful smile on his face as he sat down behind the desk, gathered a few papers, and reached down in his coat pocket to retrieve a long, sort of ivory pipe. "Now, as I understand it, Mister Oni... you were found nearly frozen at our front archway last night. You also seem to have a... unique reaction to liquor of any sort. And of course not meaning to pry at all, sir, but I am curious..." at this point, he leaned over the desk and whispered with his pipe in mouth, "why?"
Oni only stared at the curvy smoke that made its way up from the inn-master's pipe. He snorted, and the dark mist swept away from his face. "I was in the foreign part of town. The night was cold. The doorstep of your inn was as far as I could go. As for the alcohol," he snorted again, blowing the smoke away, "...it just happens to run in the family."
The inn-master stared at him awkwardly for a moment before chuckling again and saying, "Well that serves as an answer! Now, if you sign right here," he pushed a thick booklet of parchment across the desk, pointing at a blank spot midway down the bottom of a page, "you can check yourself in, and stay as long as you need to."
As he handed him a black pen, Oni stared down at the paper for a moment, taking the time to observe what each line was for. Lightly dipping the pen into the ink bottle once, he quickly brought it over the parchment and jotted down a few, very light characters. He seemed to be very irritated with the scratchy sounds of each stroke he made with the pen. Soon, he pushed the book, pen, and bottle back to the inn-master, and turned halfway to face the doorway.
"Thanks very much, mister Oni," said the cheery-one with a grin. "If you ever need help, just call for Master Gladseed. Have a good day."
Oni paid no tribute of farewell at all as he turned on his heel and exited the room, away from the sunlight, and away from Master Gladseed, who was apparently the Lord of the Smiles.
*Aoreth - I kinda' made that name up; I took the name of the Gondorian healer, Ioreth, and stuck a Mary-Sue-ish 'A' there. Doesn't it disgust you?
Author's Note:
...I hate most fangirls. Unfortunately, there's one in this story. At the moment, no, it's not Narcissus.
...BLECH!
~Naheka
Wind and Fire
Chapter 2: The Lord of the Smiles
He collapsed against the door, sliding down slowly as he slapped his hands against his forehead.
"Good Gods! My name is Oni!" he thought angrily to himself. "Not 'Roni'! It makes me sound like some sort of foreign food! The stupidity of these people is so great that I can still smell it!" After sitting in frustrated silence for a long while, he pushed himself up from the floor and made his way over to the window, quickly drawing the curtains open. "I've got to get out of this place immediately! What a waste of--" He flung open the shutters, only to be hit in the face by a ferocious blast of wind and snow. He seethed at the cold bite it clamped on his skin. He slammed the window shut. "...Never mind."
Departing the window sill, he began to pace around the back of the room, beside the candle light on the table. His black cloak billowed in a sort of non-existent wind as he walked back and forth. "Stop it!" He stamped on the end of his cloak again in an attempt to get it to stop wavering. "Stupid thing. I hate it when it does that. There isn't even a bloody breeze in this forsaken place!"
He spun on his heel and flopped down on the springy bed covered in moderate blue sheets, staring up at the roof. "What do I do now?" The roof was made up of several long, trim, wooden planks. "I cannot even remember what I'm doing here..." As time passed by in silence, he started to count the spots on the ceiling. "I guess I'll have to lodge myself here until I get more information." There were exactly thirty-six spots on the two by two yard square above him. He knew. He had counted at least fourteen times. "I'm sleepy..."
By the time he had pondered this last thought, Telperion, the Moon carrier, had begun to depart the East, as Arien, the Sun, approached the shores of the Grey Havens. The sky was cerulean again, a sign of dawn approaching. A new day had begun.
~*~
"He's neurotic or something. It's kinda' funny, actually."
"Neurotic doesn't quite sound too funny to me. But I suppose I could agree with you."
Aoreth* and Narcissus stopped together at the last door at the end of the hall. Aoreth, blonde and pale, sighed heavily and knocked on the door, her light brown eyes lit with concern as she and her friend of identical figure stepped back, awaiting for the guest to open the door. There was no sign of movement, let alone life, behind the door.
"You wanna' go in?" whispered Aoreth, shoving Narcissus forward. She shook her head vigorously.
"No! I don't want to disturb him!"
"We have to." Aoreth forced Narcissus' hand to turn the handle. "Master Gladseed wants him up to talk for business. You don't want to risk losing your job, do you?" At this notion, Narcissus groaned and slowly opened the door, allowing herself to take a peek in, first. Aoreth poked her head in soon afterward. She gasped. Narcissus choked in attempt to restrain another laugh.
"He's lying in his own drool," she muttered with a grin.
Aoreth, gaping at 'Roni' with an open mouth, put a hand over her heart. "Narcissus! Look at him! He's sleeping like an angel!"
"He wasn't exactly an angel last night," thought Narcissus. Yes, 'Roni' had fallen into a very deep sleep, deep enough to prevent himself from drowning in his own spit. Yet Aoreth was gazing at the long, silky black hair that spilled over his dun shoulders and face. It was at least as long enough to reach his waist. But suddenly, the door was pulled shut, and Narcissus was thrown back.
"What did you do that for?" she sputtered at Aoreth, who had sunk to the ground against the wall, looking flustered.
More like star-struck. "You never told me he was so adorable!" Narcissus groaned again and shook her head as Aoreth's eyes widened. "He seems so tall and dark and--"
"Psychotic," drawled Narcissus to finish her sentence.
"Hey!" Aoreth sprung from the wall and stamped in front of her co-waiter's face. "You're just jealous because... because I like him better than you do."
"Goodness. We move rather fast in relationships, now don't we?"
"Stop it!"
"Will someone please explain to me why I find two women arguing at my door at 7:00 in the morning?"
Aoreth and Narcissus whipped around. 'Roni' was standing in the doorway, looking very displeased to be awoken so rudely. He glared sinisterly at both of them. "Is there something so important that I have to be disturbed to be notified?" Neither of them spoke, for Aoreth's stunned grip on Narcissus' wrist was so tight that she had to hide her seethed teeth between her lips. "Well? No?" He began to withdraw back into his chambers. "I should complain for such terrible service."
"Wait!" cried Aoreth.
'Roni' poked his head out of the doorway again. "What?"
Aoreth had obviously frozen in place. "We apologize, sir," said Narcissus, also trying to conceal her attempts to wriggle free from Aoreth's grip. "But we've come to--ow! Get off, Aoreth! -- to tell you that our inn-keeper would like to talk to you, concerning last night's events."
'Roni' lazily raised an eyebrow. "Really?" He yawned widely, and the heavy marks under his eyes became even more noticeable. "So, why can't I just finish sleeping here quietly and by myself before I speak with your alpha?"
"I wouldn't know," sighed Aoreth dreamily. "We should just let you go in peace, shouldn't we, Narcissus? You can come talk to the Master, later." 'Roni' looked almost frightened at the pathetic waitress' gleaming, enormous eyes. "Have a good morning."
Muttering something cross under his breath, he gave them both one last glare before slamming the door shut.
"Aoreth!" cried Narcissus, arms flailing as she began pacing up and down the hallway quickly. "You idiot! How could you do such a thing?"
"Oh, shut up," said Aoreth in the same, dense, lost tone. "I think he's just fine sleeping until he likes."
Yet surprisingly, as the two waitresses began to walk back down the corridor, 'Roni' hadn't woken up again as Narcissus took the time to hit her head against the wall. For some reason, she thought she needed it.
~*~
"So..."
Oni's dark eyes darted quickly back and forth, several times to the window, several times to the door, and only once or twice to the cheery, portly man that sat behind a desk, piled with yellow parchment forms and ink bottles. He squinted slightly at the pale sunlight that streamed down through the curtains to his left. But the gray sky of winter gave him some comfort, whatever he believed comfort was.
"Sit, will you, Mister Roni?" chortled the man, gesturing to a wooden stool beside the desk.
"My name is Oni," he grunted in reply.
"Ah, most sincere apologies, sire." The man kept the blissful smile on his face as he sat down behind the desk, gathered a few papers, and reached down in his coat pocket to retrieve a long, sort of ivory pipe. "Now, as I understand it, Mister Oni... you were found nearly frozen at our front archway last night. You also seem to have a... unique reaction to liquor of any sort. And of course not meaning to pry at all, sir, but I am curious..." at this point, he leaned over the desk and whispered with his pipe in mouth, "why?"
Oni only stared at the curvy smoke that made its way up from the inn-master's pipe. He snorted, and the dark mist swept away from his face. "I was in the foreign part of town. The night was cold. The doorstep of your inn was as far as I could go. As for the alcohol," he snorted again, blowing the smoke away, "...it just happens to run in the family."
The inn-master stared at him awkwardly for a moment before chuckling again and saying, "Well that serves as an answer! Now, if you sign right here," he pushed a thick booklet of parchment across the desk, pointing at a blank spot midway down the bottom of a page, "you can check yourself in, and stay as long as you need to."
As he handed him a black pen, Oni stared down at the paper for a moment, taking the time to observe what each line was for. Lightly dipping the pen into the ink bottle once, he quickly brought it over the parchment and jotted down a few, very light characters. He seemed to be very irritated with the scratchy sounds of each stroke he made with the pen. Soon, he pushed the book, pen, and bottle back to the inn-master, and turned halfway to face the doorway.
"Thanks very much, mister Oni," said the cheery-one with a grin. "If you ever need help, just call for Master Gladseed. Have a good day."
Oni paid no tribute of farewell at all as he turned on his heel and exited the room, away from the sunlight, and away from Master Gladseed, who was apparently the Lord of the Smiles.
*Aoreth - I kinda' made that name up; I took the name of the Gondorian healer, Ioreth, and stuck a Mary-Sue-ish 'A' there. Doesn't it disgust you?