TEST DRIVE MEME

[fairyfoes]

TEST DRIVE MEME

Considering apping to EACHDRAIDH? Why not give the setting a test run here! OPTIONAL SCENARIOS 01. ARRIVING IN THE DRABWURLD. The Seelie and Unseelie courts welcome you with mirthful revelry and hearty food. After you have been briefed on your purpose here, you will find an endless feast and a night filled with entertainment to placate your concerns. Mingle with new arrivals, sneak down the castle halls and make sure your eyes are always on your glass; fairies and imps have no bias when it comes to tricks! 02. THE STATION. Looking for a little slice of home? The Station gives you all that and more. Take advantage of the wifi, have a cup of fairy-brewed coffee (the one they didn't spit in) or sit back and relax on the patio. You can even move your things into one of the available rooms! 03. WILDCARD. Your own scenario! Explore the Drabwurld or simply take advantage of your Locket!

Comments

[firith]

That was not the reason I came to uproot you, for which I apologise. I might have awaited your return, but I wished to take the air.

[ The unicorn snorts happily, lipping at Legolas's sleeve. Above, Thranduil tips his chin away north-east and slides to the ground, pacing on the unicorn's other side as they start a slow aimless amble through the forest. Best to give the beast a chance to catch its breath and eat. ]

Have you been to Cothromach?

[orcsurfing]

[ It reminds him idly of the times home, when he was nothing more but an elfling and the long walks through their home under the light of the sun or a starry sky with his father, and it's a comfort. Lightly, he rescues his sleeve from the beast's mouth, and rubs the gentle arch of a neck, strong with muscles taunt and tense beneath the warm skin and he continues on along with Thranduil. ]

You need not apologise, father. I am glad to have you join me.

[ At the question, he cocks his head slightly, in wonder as to what brought it on. ]

I have not yet. This forest and its secrets have been occupying all my time as of late and I still believe there is more to discover. Why do you ask?

[firith]

It is called an aelfen-dwarven city, built by both races. I've not the time to spare on such a journey. I thought you might visit in my stead and relay the bearing of it back, when you return.

[ Such a sanctuary has never been in all his long years on Middle-Earth, not on such a grand scale. Statues front the entrance, the books in Caer Glaem's library say — an elf and a dwarf, one at either flank. ]

When I am finished for a time with my interests in the main castle, I have a mind to go there.

[orcsurfing]

[ An offer that fills his heart with joy (with sources oh so various and plenty), makes him straighten his back even further to walk proudly alongside his father. The restlessness stays with him still, the energy of the early springtime of his life. And a thought of travel still is an exciting one, as attached as he might have grown to the Greenword forest he so favoured. It is almost as if he had grown addicted to it, or perhaps it's the health of it that makes him feel so at ease at all times.

Legolas brushes away a branch in his way, delicately lifting it with the back of his hand and releasing it behind him as he passes by. ]

If you wish me to, then I shall set out as soon as I am able.

[ He speaks without a single doubt clouding his voice. ]

It sounds a city with a great deal of interest to me as well, despair as I may to leave the forest behind.

[firith]

Despair but a little, Legolas. The forest will still be here when you wish to return.

[ Pleased as he is, his words twist in amusement. When the unicorn stops to munch on a tussock of rich wildflowers, he gives it some space and almost absently rests a hand on one of the trees. The Greenwood here has a gentle way about it, almost as peaceable as a mother's touch, and he understands all too well in his own right how addictive it must be for any elf, let alone one so young as Legolas. ]

How long have you been abroad here, now? By a recent count.

[orcsurfing]

[ Quiet hints of embarrassment resound in his voice with a truthful admission. ]

It is still almost like leaving home for the first time, though home it is not...

[ Perhaps he had grown too comfortable here, but he couldn't feel much remorse. His father is here with him, though unlike Legolas, Thranduil is a little less out and about among the trees, more willing to remain in the castle and learn of this world. Still, it only serves to add another level of comfort to Legolas' stay here. Something which makes this bearable so easily, adds a sense of familiarity to what's otherwise too strange.

Though his thoughts often stray to other friends that he would hope to see and with whom he wished to share the experience. ]

It has been three months, in which winter has given way to the stirring of spring.

[firith]

I remember.

[ Spoken under his breath, still loud enough for elven ears to pick it up, he plucks a handful of grass and takes it to the unicorn, stroking through its glinting golden mane as it eats off his palm. His gaze rests on Legolas. ]

You ought to meet some of the people in the castle. We were called here to defend this place, and it would do you good to at least know the faces of your allies.

[ If not their names or anything else about them. ]

[orcsurfing]

[ Legolas' eyes flicker to his father's face to meet his eyes, still bright blue in the soft light of a dying day. Indeed, he caught the words, nothing more but a soft gasp that could easily be lost within the whisper of leaves moved with every, even the gentlest, gust of wind.

He wished not to force him relive memories unpleasant, painful perhaps, Legolas isn't certain, reading Thranduil has always been a task nearly impossible. Though his father could read him like an open book. ]

I have met some of them, before I began to wander...

[ But he couldn't quite not answer the call of wanderlust within his blood, to ease the longing for the sea that would otherwise overtake him. ]

When I return from Cothromach, I shall strive to stay behind at the castle more often. [ He stops suddenly, a thoughtful pause before he asks a question of his own. ] How do you find our allies, father?

[firith]

[ There is a terrible satisfaction in knowing the sea cannot take his son away from him in this land. He is covetous of Legolas's time and company, but only inasmuch as any father would be if their child decided to leave for a distant shore, never to return unless joined by their parent's volition. How Elrond bears the loss of Arwen's immortality is a source of mystery and second-hand pride in the other elf-lord's self-control.

Legolas wanders these woods because they feel safe and he has trouble standing still. He wishes for that final journey to be taken and, until it is, he will be restless evermore. Thranduil answers him after a short pause where he puts these thoughts to the back of his mind, all of them sparked by his son's tell-tale phrasing. ]

I do not trust all of them. Some are wily and others foolish, but the greater numbers appear to have good hearts. The majority, if nothing else. I would not trade any one of them for the likes of Caer Scima, if the tales of the Unseelie court stand true.

[orcsurfing]

[ It was all ahead of them, the inevitable parting and the conversation - debate, more than likely - in which Legolas would try to convince his father to travel beyond the shores of Middle-Earth with him, before they have been spirited away to this world to lend their skills. And this now should be nothing more but a delay as well, until the day comes when their task is done and their time at Caer Glaem comes to an end.

Only so long can Legolas deny the yearning in his heart, only so long is he willing to do so. The delay is welcome, in any case.

In an instant the wind picks up, a single powerful gust that sends petals, shaken harshly from the newly bloomed flowers, and leaves dancing through the air between them. A colourful display that lasts a handful of moments, before it all dies down. ]

It is the most we can ask out of a mismatched lot such as it is, I suppose, so long as there is willingness to work together for a goal we all ought to share. [ He brushes off some that caught on the golden mane of the unicorn, plucks out those that tangled within the golden locks. ] It is a preferable lot, indeed...

[firith]

[ The stirring of the breeze brings his thoughts back to the present. ]

To orcs and sorcerers, yes. We seem to have collected our own band of murderers and thieves, if only by fate of their circumstances and not acts committed out of sickened hearts. [ A frown touches his brow as he watches Legolas's fingers tidy the unicorn's mane of petals. ] I ask that you journey no more northward than Nimh Gleanne, certainly not into the forest called La Llorona. No matter what you hear of it.

[ The Dead City of Quendi. An ill-portent, that, when he read the word in the library. No, better to stay far away from the shadows in the north ...

Thranduil's life in Menegroth taught him that well enough. ]

[orcsurfing]

[ The frown on his father's expression doesn't escape Legolas' notice and he listens carefully. A lot of his thoughts Legolas may not read, but certain undertones in this voice he has grown wise to. It took many years for him to learn to pick up what was genuine concern, what posed a real threat, and what was simply his... unnecessary protectiveness in Legolas' eyes.

It seems to be the former and he bows his head a notch in acknowledgement. ]

I will keep to south of the Forodwaith, unless a necessity presents itself that further north we must travel. On my own, however, I will go no further.

[ Though curiosity gets the better of him and it gives birth to the question: ]

What have you learned of those lands?

[ Perhaps he should take the time and study the libraries of the castle they lived at now, should have the patience for it as is the way of the elves, yet he cannot imagine coping himself up in what seems to him like dusty hallways and cold walls, when the alternative is fresh air, beautiful sky and rich nature all around. ]

[firith]

[ He trusts Legolas to keep his word, without a doubt, yet Thranduil shakes his head once and lays a hand on his son's arm. ]

Ask me another time. Such talk is not for a day as fair as this. [ Pacing on, the unicorn makes slow progress in his wake, nibbling the grasses and leaves as Thranduil's tone lightens pointedly. ] I have been fielding all manner of questions from young ladies, concerning your whereabouts.

[ The easiest topic change he has made in a while. ]

[orcsurfing]

[ Easiest for whom, truly. The weight of the previous subject dissolves immediately, for Legolas does understand the reasoning behind it and he accepts it, resolving simply to ask when the time seemed more right for it. However the new topic is an odd one for him, it lightens the mood, indeed, but it is something he's not entirely sure how to... approach when speaking with his father.

He's past the age when he would fluster easily, though it's a close thing and his gaze still shies away into the woods ahead of them, flickering between one tree and another, catching movement and the sight of a wild beast that flees from the approaching elves. Nothing out of ordinary at all, but a good distraction for his eyes and a pleasant sight to boot. ]

I was not aware my presence, and now lack thereof, has made such an impression. I hope they did not bother you too greatly.

[ Naive Legolas was not, neither was he awfully oblivious to attentions he sometimes received from those around him: whether it was back in the halls of Eryn Lasgalen, or at the castle here now. Polite, friendly and warm - if seemingly distant in it all - as was proper to all those who asked for his attention and time. ]

[firith]

[ It's a nice respite from discussing how it sounds, according to the library's tomes, like a whole elven race was wiped out long ago. He doesn't miss Legolas's mild exasperation, thinly veiled as it is with distractions aplenty from the forest, and raises his brows. ]

Not at all, they seem to be quite scared of me.

[orcsurfing]

[ Legolas mirrors his father's expression, both brows rising with a curious, sideways, look he gives Thranduil. It's an opportunity for him, now, to divert the subject to a more safe ground that has nothing to do with his possible love life, or rather lack thereof. Legolas seems to have grown into and beyond the years of highest passion for the elves without as much as a single flame of desire. Many he was fond of in his time, but none awakened a passion or a love to last the many years of his life.

In any case, it is a chance to avoid a subject that's really a no-subject at all. ]

And yet they still approach you with such mundane matters? Surely it must not be quite so bad as you believe.

[firith]

'I wonder if Prince Legolas would walk awhile with me in the gardens, if he is so fond of the trees.' 'Ah, so he enjoys archery a great deal, then?' 'What are his favourite dishes?'

[ Quoting the maidens, Thranduil's smile deepens and he looks away to brush his hand through a splash of bright red flowers hanging from vines. You sweet summer child. ]

It bothers me but a little. A natural course of things, though none of the attentions I find a suitable match.

[ Relax, kiddo. Daddy isn't going to pair you off with anyone here. ]

[orcsurfing]

[ ... he should have foreseen or expected it would not be quite so easy to get Thranduil off a track on which he set himself. Attempts subtle could easily be too subtle, without the force necessary to break through the train of thought, attempts bolder ran the risk of being too easy to see through. It was a nearly impossible balance to find.

And right now it seemed that said track was teasing his son about the events going on in the court. Legolas' eyes linger on Thranduil's back for a moment, before looking back to his new steed, giving it his attention as a means of distraction. ]

Do you indulge those questions, father? [ The curiosity gets the better of him, it's only natural to wonder just what does his father respond with when faced with questions such as that. ] What do you say to them?

[ He's grateful though, and glad that there is no need to worry about suddenly finding himself with a candidate for a mate... thank you, daddy! ]

[firith]

[ Actual laughter rises to the canopy as he slides an arm around Legolas's shoulders, mindful of the quiver and bow. ]

I say my son can speak for himself and has a mind of his own.

[orcsurfing]

[ On one hand: it is better this way, on the other hand: it means Legolas will have to field those questions himself upon his return. He sighs softly, though Thranduil's laugher is more than enough to make up for his slight exasperation now. A pleasant sound that always had a soothing effect on his heart and nerves and there were times when it was not a common occurrence, so now Legolas cherishes every moment.

The arm around him is warm and Legolas can't quite stop the curl of his lip in response. ]

Thank you for the warning of what awaits me shall I return to the castle.

[ But he does not sound too put upon, only in so much that... those are attentions he can't return and disappointment is bound to follow. ]

I will be sure to put away some time for this purpose...

[firith]

Cothromach awaits. A convenient excuse not to stay in the castle too long, perhaps.

[ Or their company. He knows you all too well, child. ]

[orcsurfing]

Should I count on a change of heart when I return?

[ Like many mortals are wont to, with time their feelings change easily, almost with no effort whatsoever on their part; a stark difference to the ways of the elves. The feelings of mortals could be fickle like a leaf on a gust of wind, fluttering here and there, driven by a force beyond their imagination.

Still, though, Legolas can't quite wipe the amusement off his face or out of his voice. ]

You need not more reasons to convince me to set out as soon as possible, however.

[firith]

Quite possibly.

[ And it's for that very reason he refuses to indulge them; they would only tire of his son in time, fickle and vapid in the ways of devotion. (Never mind the fact he will not, under any circumstances, condone his son surrendering his immortality.) ]

I would have you stay with me as long as possible, if it were prudent, but it is not. Return to the castle in a day or two, share a meal with me before you decide to leave again. That is all I ask.

[orcsurfing]

[ A thought that has not once took shape in Legolas' mind, not even during the years he has been witnessing the work of time on friends dear to his heart beyond any measure. Greying hair, backs bending under the weight of age, hands that once firmly held a sword or an axe weakening. Watching Men and Dwarves great reach the ages of ruin wounded him deeply, and he did what was only in his power to make the most of the time they granted to spend together, but there was one thing he could not and would not do or consider: joining them in their mortality.

He was what he was and he learned ways to cope with all that went about him. ]

You ask so little, father. [ Legolas tilts his head back, to look directly up at Thranduil. ] I could do more than that and please say nothing of the prudency of it. I have been amiss to leave the way I did.

[firith]

You have not. I would not bar you from exploring this fair land, not when it is like to the kind you ought to have had back home.

[ He curls his hand around the back of Legolas's neck in a gentle loving squeeze, then slides apart so they can walk as two again, not one. ]

You must take Estellio with you, when you go to Cothromach. [ The unicorn looks over curiously, tossing its mane. ] He will bear you swiftly.