Author's note: I myself had a little trouble writing this chapter, its the
last chapter that stands between the real action beginning, but its too
crucial to skip.
Part 4
Angus blinked a few times. Now Melnar had let the curtain down again, the hut was covered in complete darkness. Melnar himself had chosen to remain outside. While his eyes got used to the lighting he saw the insides of the simple hut: a small table and a bed. On the bed lay a small figure, an old woman: Elaenir. Rohan stood behind him and squezed his shoulder, a sign for him to step forward.
Angus knelt beside the bed. Elaenir was laying with her back toward him and for a moment he thought to his shame but also to his relieve, that maybe she was dead already. The figure of the fragile old woman stirred and turned and two sharp eyes staired directly at Angus. They both stared at each other for a few moments. Time had not been kind on Elaenir. The young blonde woman how Angus remembered her as his mother, had turned into a small wrinkled creature, thin streaks of grey hair across her face. Her eyes, ones blue, twinkly and almond-shaped were now small narrowed and grey, as if all life had drained from them. How a person could change in barely twenty years. Elaenir lifted her hand up and felt Angus's face and then ran her fingers through his hair. A toddler she left, a handsome grown man now was sitting by her site. His eyes stood sad and she knew why, it wasn't her death that would soon follow that was bothering him. 'Angus', she whispered as a tear found its way across her cheek. 'There you are, you've made it.' Angus opened his mouth to say something: 'Not thanks to you', he wanted to say, no scream, he wanted answers. But he merely nodded..
Her trembling fingers were still stroking his hair. 'I have not much longer to live Angus. You deserve to know..' she winced, a stabbing pain went through her body, it wouldn't take long now, she thought and continued: 'everything, though there isn't much too tell.' Angus still sat motionless, it was unreal to him. Elaenir had time to prepair herself, however Angus, who had waited twenty years for answers, was now numbed. 'It's maybe best if I start at the very beginning.' She took a deep sigh.
'I remember the day i found you as if it were yesterday. It had stormed severely the night before and I went out to the beach, because like you probably already know, the most extraordinary things can be found at the beach after a great storm.' Angus forced a smile. Elaenir coughed heavily before continueing. 'And that's where i found you, a precious baby boy. I found you in a basket warmly wrapped in a woolly blanket. I thought the freezing wind might have killed you but the cold didn't seem to have touched you because when i lifted you, you opened your big brown eyes and beamed at me. Your tiny fist grabbed my index-finger with no intention of letting me go, so I didn't.' Elaenir smiled at the thought, Angus though still frowned. Rohan, who sat close by the opening of the hut, listened closely to Elaenir's whisperings.
'The wind was picking up again so I thought it best to carry you home, to my hut. I took you up the rocks, across the moor untill we reached the edge of the forest in which my village lay. You started to cry so I sat down and rocked you, but when I looked up I saw a great white deer stand in front of me. It had massive antlers and slowly approached us. I was scared , Angus, and didn't dare to move! When it was close enough it bent its huge head, as if bowing for us. It seemed to have a calming effect on you, because you stopped crying. The deer gazed at us for another few moments and then turned and fled. I stood up again, determined to reach my hut as fast as I could, when I heard the sound of a piece of metal fall on the rocky surface. I looked at my feet and saw a pendant. This pendant.' Elaenir reached to her chest and held up the image of a deer with a blue gem closed between its antlers. She gave it to Angus. Angus looked at it seemingly untouched, while Rohan couldn't help feeling a shiver down his spine. Didn't Angus realise what he had just received? Unless Elaenir was lying here, which he doubted very much, this pendant was the link to Angus's family! Not only that, the deer indicated he had a destiny!
Angus stroke the pendant and turned it. On the back he saw marks inscripted. 'Did you do this?', he asked Elaenir and pointed at his name. 'No, Angus, it was there when i found it. I couldn't read it so I asked one of the town elders what it meant. It said it meant Angus and that's what I named you.' Her breath had quickened since she had started the story. 'Not long now..', she thought, she had to use her time wisely. 'Listen to me Angus', she grabbed his wrist. 'I rased you as could as I could, though I knew that I was young, too young, to guide you untill you would come of age. And then Irham appeared. He promised me the world, Angus! Empty promisses he made me.', floods of tears now rolled from Elaenir's boney face. 'So I left you hating me, I made sure of that, so that you wouldn't miss me! I should've stayed with you!' Suddenly she let go of Angus's wrist, her eyes grew wide and her gaze turned to ceiling. 'Owh it's starting, my legs are cold.' She turned her gaze back to Angus. Angus closed her shivering hands into his, his eyes looked desperate: 'I never hated you, never! I didn't understand, I still don't, but I never hated you!' His shoulders were shaking, his eyes wet. 'Come here Angus.. ' They embraced.
Angus didn't feel like letting go and chose not to hear Elaenir's last breath. This couldn't be it! A frim hand touched his shoulder and pulled him slowly away from Elaenir's body. He closed his eyes and quickly turned, not to see her corps. He looked straight at Rohan's kind blue eyes. 'Go, I'll take care of things', he whispered. Angus, gratefully, nodded. He fled to the beach where he was supposed to be found. And there he sat on the sand, realising what had just happened. He turned the pendant between his fingers, looked at it and stroke the blue gem. Finally the sun set and Angus, tired, fell asleep on the wet sand.
Part 4
Angus blinked a few times. Now Melnar had let the curtain down again, the hut was covered in complete darkness. Melnar himself had chosen to remain outside. While his eyes got used to the lighting he saw the insides of the simple hut: a small table and a bed. On the bed lay a small figure, an old woman: Elaenir. Rohan stood behind him and squezed his shoulder, a sign for him to step forward.
Angus knelt beside the bed. Elaenir was laying with her back toward him and for a moment he thought to his shame but also to his relieve, that maybe she was dead already. The figure of the fragile old woman stirred and turned and two sharp eyes staired directly at Angus. They both stared at each other for a few moments. Time had not been kind on Elaenir. The young blonde woman how Angus remembered her as his mother, had turned into a small wrinkled creature, thin streaks of grey hair across her face. Her eyes, ones blue, twinkly and almond-shaped were now small narrowed and grey, as if all life had drained from them. How a person could change in barely twenty years. Elaenir lifted her hand up and felt Angus's face and then ran her fingers through his hair. A toddler she left, a handsome grown man now was sitting by her site. His eyes stood sad and she knew why, it wasn't her death that would soon follow that was bothering him. 'Angus', she whispered as a tear found its way across her cheek. 'There you are, you've made it.' Angus opened his mouth to say something: 'Not thanks to you', he wanted to say, no scream, he wanted answers. But he merely nodded..
Her trembling fingers were still stroking his hair. 'I have not much longer to live Angus. You deserve to know..' she winced, a stabbing pain went through her body, it wouldn't take long now, she thought and continued: 'everything, though there isn't much too tell.' Angus still sat motionless, it was unreal to him. Elaenir had time to prepair herself, however Angus, who had waited twenty years for answers, was now numbed. 'It's maybe best if I start at the very beginning.' She took a deep sigh.
'I remember the day i found you as if it were yesterday. It had stormed severely the night before and I went out to the beach, because like you probably already know, the most extraordinary things can be found at the beach after a great storm.' Angus forced a smile. Elaenir coughed heavily before continueing. 'And that's where i found you, a precious baby boy. I found you in a basket warmly wrapped in a woolly blanket. I thought the freezing wind might have killed you but the cold didn't seem to have touched you because when i lifted you, you opened your big brown eyes and beamed at me. Your tiny fist grabbed my index-finger with no intention of letting me go, so I didn't.' Elaenir smiled at the thought, Angus though still frowned. Rohan, who sat close by the opening of the hut, listened closely to Elaenir's whisperings.
'The wind was picking up again so I thought it best to carry you home, to my hut. I took you up the rocks, across the moor untill we reached the edge of the forest in which my village lay. You started to cry so I sat down and rocked you, but when I looked up I saw a great white deer stand in front of me. It had massive antlers and slowly approached us. I was scared , Angus, and didn't dare to move! When it was close enough it bent its huge head, as if bowing for us. It seemed to have a calming effect on you, because you stopped crying. The deer gazed at us for another few moments and then turned and fled. I stood up again, determined to reach my hut as fast as I could, when I heard the sound of a piece of metal fall on the rocky surface. I looked at my feet and saw a pendant. This pendant.' Elaenir reached to her chest and held up the image of a deer with a blue gem closed between its antlers. She gave it to Angus. Angus looked at it seemingly untouched, while Rohan couldn't help feeling a shiver down his spine. Didn't Angus realise what he had just received? Unless Elaenir was lying here, which he doubted very much, this pendant was the link to Angus's family! Not only that, the deer indicated he had a destiny!
Angus stroke the pendant and turned it. On the back he saw marks inscripted. 'Did you do this?', he asked Elaenir and pointed at his name. 'No, Angus, it was there when i found it. I couldn't read it so I asked one of the town elders what it meant. It said it meant Angus and that's what I named you.' Her breath had quickened since she had started the story. 'Not long now..', she thought, she had to use her time wisely. 'Listen to me Angus', she grabbed his wrist. 'I rased you as could as I could, though I knew that I was young, too young, to guide you untill you would come of age. And then Irham appeared. He promised me the world, Angus! Empty promisses he made me.', floods of tears now rolled from Elaenir's boney face. 'So I left you hating me, I made sure of that, so that you wouldn't miss me! I should've stayed with you!' Suddenly she let go of Angus's wrist, her eyes grew wide and her gaze turned to ceiling. 'Owh it's starting, my legs are cold.' She turned her gaze back to Angus. Angus closed her shivering hands into his, his eyes looked desperate: 'I never hated you, never! I didn't understand, I still don't, but I never hated you!' His shoulders were shaking, his eyes wet. 'Come here Angus.. ' They embraced.
Angus didn't feel like letting go and chose not to hear Elaenir's last breath. This couldn't be it! A frim hand touched his shoulder and pulled him slowly away from Elaenir's body. He closed his eyes and quickly turned, not to see her corps. He looked straight at Rohan's kind blue eyes. 'Go, I'll take care of things', he whispered. Angus, gratefully, nodded. He fled to the beach where he was supposed to be found. And there he sat on the sand, realising what had just happened. He turned the pendant between his fingers, looked at it and stroke the blue gem. Finally the sun set and Angus, tired, fell asleep on the wet sand.