(Archive) Rorgan

Dol Amroth: Prince\'s Castle - Western Landing

Upon the outer edges of this broad semicircle of empty white stone marches a line of pillars, bearing upon their shoulders a massive stone ring some twenty to thirty feet above. Archways are thus formed between the pillars, with pennons bearing devices flapping in the constant breeze. Surf thrums, almost palpable through the rock beneath, the cliffs barely a bowshot in the distance to the west, where an ancient stone-gated bridge leads across to a far-off tower. An overall sense of emptiness pervades the area, with the citadel eastward and little but sea and sky beyond the columns to north, south and west.

Sea-birds cry as they wheel in the distance, above shapes of ships on the swells, little more than dark dots against the great Bay of Belfalas. The Tirith Aear--Tower of the Sea--lies across the bridge to the west the bridge itself is an impressive monument to the ancient stonecraft of Numenor, made entirely of solid rock that seems older than time itself. Salt tang is heavy in the air, and most surfaces on this portico are slicked with moisture from the air above the Bay.

Clouds scutter across the Autumn sky...The wind blows in from the plains, chilling you.

Contents:

Aearwen

Obvious exits:

Bridge and Castle Doors

[Aearwen(#7229)] The cry of the sea-birds echo loudly on the stone emptiness of the western landing. Flying through the air and then dipping into the ocean, they seem to be the only living presence in this place. A chilled breeze whips around the stones and archway, bringing with it the tang of salt air as it searches on eastward in its movement.

Stepping out into the elements on this clear afternoon is a lone woman. The hood of her cloak is drawn as her footsteps make there way through the archways and step from rock to rock. Her stance is one of solitude as her eyes look seaward, no expression on the face of Lady Aearwen as she peruses the surroundings. Pausing as she reaches a high pinnacle, her arms wrap around her waist as she gazes out to sea, eyes resting on the boats of the local fisherman to the Bay of Belfalas.

A lone man also occupies another portion of the Western landing, and though he peers intently Westward, the woman\'s footsteps do not go unnoticed by the tall tailor. His cane makes a light tapping upon the stones as Rorgan limps to where Aearwen gazes out to sea, speaking softly as he approaches, \"I was looking much further West than the fishing boats, my lady.\"

Indeed, the bright blue orbs that inhabit the Guildmaster\'s face stray almost immediately from the boats to the farthest reaches of the wide blue sea, and he sighs softly.

Not turning at the sound of her friend\'s familiar voice, Aearwen continues watching the men on the boats as they haul in nets filled with fish. Her soft voice does respond to Rorgan, \"Hello, my dear friend. How fare thee today? I have not seen much of you since my return to Dol Amroth.\" Her hands rub up and down her arms to ward off a bit of chill, the wind whips an errant curl across her forehead.

[Rorgan(#19834)] As his cloak billows and ripples with the same wind that chills the lady, Rorgan offers his friend a smile, \"The sea air seems to be doing me wonders, Aearwen. Unfortunately, I have been unable to take in much of the faire and tournament.\" Again the sigh, \"If Ulmo only knew how his favored children of the sea have fallen...\" the tailor\'s voice trails off, then picks back up quickly, \"I had no idea that so many of the house lords looked so poorly upon our allies to the North.\"

Tilting her head back and inhaling deeply, Aearwen enjoys the rays of sunshine and the fresh smell of the air, mindless of her blowing hair and clothes as she says, \"This is one think that I have sorely missed about Dol Amroth. The beauty and the constant fresh sea air whirling around.\" Her eyes open and a chill is in the blue orbs as she turns to Rorgan and says, \"I am sorely disappointed in many of our house lords and other nobles in their reactions to our trip to Rohan.\" Her head shakes in disbelief, \"Already I grow weary of the bickering and backstabbing between houses.\"

[Rorgan(#19834)] \"The prince seems to grow weary as well, though I imagine it is more than the petty bickering and other antics of our \'noble\' houses,\" Rorgan says, putting a mocking emphasis on the word noble. \"I had thought to make him a gift to lift his spirits.\"

Nodding her head in agreement, \"With the loss of Caldur back to the dreaded Corsairs, the Prince does have his hands full of problems. Sometimes I do wonder how he handles it all with such dipolmacy.\" A laughs slips out as she continues, \"Of course, throwing us all out of the throne room the other night was quite a feat. I can still see the veins in his neck as he issued that command.\" Looking straight up as a sea-bird flies over, Aearwen sighs, \"To be truthful, I have gotten to see little of the faire or tourney as official duties have commanded most of my time. Galdorim and I have seen each other for only a short moment.\" Dropping her voice a little, \"Well, other than the night of the debate when I called him down in front of everyone.\"

[Rorgan(#19834)] Offering up a sympathetic chuckle, Rorgan asks, \"Do your duties keep you that busy, or is there something else that vexes you, Wen?\"

Shrugging her shoulder at the tailor\'s question, Aearwen gives him no answer for a minute, instead she watches the boats as they come closer to the shore. Turning to face Rorgan she says with total sincerity, \"There are many things vexing me and I know not what to do about them. Galdorim is pushing for marriage and I am feeling smothered and less sure. The incident on the plains with Melethron unnerved me and I am afraid of hurting Galdorim.\"

[Rorgan(#19834)] \"There is much more in life to be afraid of than love,\" Rorgan replies softly, returning his eyes toward the far Western reaches of the horizon again. \"And there are many things worse than the adoration of a man such as Galdorim.\"

Then Rorgan\'s gaze reels itself back in, and his head turns to more fully face the lady, and he speaks frankly, \"Sir Melethron will, in all likelihood, one day be the new Lord Bragollach. Would you care to bear the burden of being Lady Bragollach in addition to all the rest?\" He pauses but only briefly here.

Apparently expecting a deeper answer, he says, \"I do not fear that you would make such a decision lightly, my lady, but that you would take it too seriously.\"

Sighing as she feels the full censure of her friends honestly, Aearwen looks into his blue eyes, the sincerity of her question blazing out of her own, \"And how do I know that my love is true now Rorgan? Since that night with Melethron, I no longer have that conviction that says Galdorim is right for life. And yet, I love the man, do I ever love the man. When we are apart, I miss him sorely and yearn for one word from his lips.

Her eyes slip back to the sea as her voice grows softer, \"Perhaps I would like the burden of being Lady Bragollach, who can tell? Melethron touches a part of me in our talks that no one else does. And I am aware that he will never give the love and devotion of Galdorim.\" A snort of laughter does sound as she says, \"He could not give half of the love and devotion of Galdorim.\"

[Rorgan(#19834)] Shaking his head, Rorgan speaks softly, calmly, his voice not so deep as that other man, but indeed, not a displeasing sound in and of itself, \"Your heart will never lie to you, Aearwen.\" Rorgan sighs then and his gaze returns to the farthest Western sea.

In but a moment his voice again comes forth, \"Your dear cousin forgot to listen to his heart, Aearwen. Indilzar could not hear the voice that comes from within -- the same voice that told me, in Caldur, that he was other than what his appearance led those around him to believe. You, my friend, must learn to hear that voice with open ears, and to embrace it.\"

Another pause here, and then the old tailor smiles to himself, \"If /that/ voice tells you that the Bragollach lad is the man for you, then I shall give you no more arguement over it. If /that/ voice is telling you that Galdorim is not the one for you, then he will have to learn to live with that. Better that than to live within a loveless marriage.\" Then another pause, Rorgan seeming to listen to the waves for a moment, before he adds one final observation, \"I think you are afraid precisely because /that/ voice has spoken and you think a life of True Love will be a boring one.\"

Dropping her head Aearwen kicks at the rocks with the toe of her slipper, watching as the small stones tumble and roll. Silence looms between the two friends as they stand there on the Western landing. Finally she says in a pained voice, \"This trip to Rohan made me hungry for travel and adventure Rorgan. Nay, not just this trip, but all of the trips we have been on in the last 18 months. My spirit is restless and yearns to leave again, be it for any reason. How can I promise Galdorim the rest of my life? Be a wife and mother when I feel this restlessness? Tis more about that feeling truly than the want of another man.\"

Her foot kicks out and dust flies as she grumbles, \"Is it so wrong to have ambition? If I marry Galdorim, tell me, what will I do with my time in Minas Tirith?\" Her lovely blue eyes tear up as she looks at Rorgan once more, \"My position as envoy to the Prince is such a fulfilling one, I have no wish to leave here and reside in Minas Tirith full time.\"

[Rorgan(#19834)] \"Then you should make that clear to Galdorim, not me,\" Rorgan smiles now, still gazing to the far West. \"Ambition is a dangerous thing, Wen, but when it strikes there is little that can be done about it. Perhaps the Prince would allow Galdorim a transfer to Dol Amroth and make his assignment to be the chief protector of his envoy, or at least allow him to be close enough to you for you to do what you must do. I know not Galdorim\'s view of such things, but my experience has taught me that the military is the military, and it matters little where your headquarters is or who is in charge -- it\'s still the military.\"

A bitter sounding laugh does Aearwen make after Rorgan finishes. \"What I find the most ironic part of this whole charade is, when I came to Dol Amroth to be an envoy, my heart was not totally into my duties. And now I find myself getting caught up in it all. I -liked- meeting King Theoden, Prince Theodred, the clan lords of Rohan.\" Dawning on her face suddenly as bright as if the sun had come from behind a cloud, \"I know what it is! How could I have not see it? Here at home, there is constant criticism and thinly veiled insults, far different from the warm reception in Rohan.\" Turning to her friend, \"Tell me true, do you not feel the same way?\"

[Rorgan(#19834)] \"The welcome for me has always been warmer in Rohan, Aearwen,\" Rorgan replies, \"but my heart has belonged to Gondor since I became a man.\" He shakes his head, \"The criticisms and the insults are something that should be fought as hard as the other weapons of the Nameless One. Perhaps, while I am here, I may win a small victory on that field, but I would think that you, for one, would be fighting against such an enemy with all the gifts you have received.\"

Aearwen says with deadly calm, \"I would admit this to no one but you my friend, but the insults hurled at me, only make me more determined to prove them all wrong. \" Slipping her arm through that of the tailer she smiles, \"You know me for the stubborn woman that I am Rorgan.\" Tiptoeing up she brushes her lips against the cheek of her friend, \"Thank you. Thank you for all the times you have listened, scolded me and have been my friend. My loyalty always has been and will continue to be yours.\" Shivering suddenly she says, \"I must repair to the warmth of inside.

\"

[Rorgan(#19834)]\"Very well then, my friend,\" Rorgan smiles, \"We shan\'t have my second-most favorite leech catching her death of cold, shall we?\" Then with a chuckle, \"I believe that I will remain here for a time. I have much to listen to my own heart about.\"

Hugging her friend for a second, Aearwen says, \"Take care my friend and do not become too chilled. I have no desire to explain to Maeghan how you caught your death of cold just before your wedding.\" Turning she walks across the rocks, kicking some of them and humming softly as she disappears into the doorway.

s across the rocks, kicking some of them and humming softly as she disappears into the doorway.