Friendly elves.. or are they??

[Mirinthel(#30248)] Dawn is cold and still, the deepening autumn edging each blade of grass and fallen leaf in a silvered frost that sparkles with the first rays of sun. The elven camp has all but disappeared, save for patches of frostless ground where tents once stood, and the clearing that once was home to a crackling campfire. Two squires busy themselves with covering the clearing in dampened brush and leaves, while others tie off small grey packs. Mirinthel stands on the outskirts of these goings-on, studying the eastern horizon with a unwavering focus.

Keldean prepares his horse for travel, pulling tightly at the leather straps for the saddle and making sure everything is safe and secure. It was Seeker that taught him how to saddle a horse, months ago, long before the troubles of the summer. The teen is quiet, too tired from an inadequate night\'s rest to feel any of the heavy emotions from last eve. He ought to be excited about starting out on a new trip, but he can\'t muster much of anything past his lethargy.

Keldean is clearly uncomfortable around the elves now, his gaze often seeking out Giliath to reassure himself that the vinter hasn\'t vanished and left him to some unexpected fate. But, beyond the furtive glances the teen has had minimal interaction with the elven group.

[Mirinthel(#30248)] A whistle not unlike the call of a woodland bird sounds from the back of the gathering, and many of the elves begin to fall into step towards the road, some of them mounted. A tall, raven haired edhel comes beside Keldean on foot, his smile bright and his Westron heavily accented. \"You are Keldean, are you not? Have you filled your canteen? We are not likely to stop until the late evening.\"

Keldean looks over when he recognizes the words and his name. His auburn curls are a tangled mess from his poor slumber, and he looks particularly shabby, at least in comparison to the elven group. \"Water? Umm.. \" The youth checks his water skin, \"Yes, it\'s good.\" In the way of supplies he hasn\'t brought much. He has a couple of blankets, some clothes, and a small bit of food, perhaps two or three days worth at best. \"It\'s time to go?\" He looks around, noticing for the first time that everyone is beginning to move.

[Mirinthel(#30248)] \"Aye, it is indeed,\" the elf answers with a quick nod. \"The Tirith... the guard... will walk at the fore. I am Thelaglan. You are to ride in the middle with me. Are you ready?\" A flicker of a glance is afforded to Keldean\'s pack, but Theleglan\'s smile is unwavering.

\"Okay.\" Keldean isn\'t used to such structure but doesn\'t argue. \"Yes, I\'m ready.\" He gives the strap on the saddle one last tug then climbs up onto the horse with moderate skill. He\'s not a seasoned rider, but he\'s not entirely green, at least. If the youth is in any sort of situation that involves more than an easy gallop, he may be in trouble. \"Thelaglan? Right?\" He makes an effort to remember the foreign-sounding name.

[Mirinthel(#30248)] \"Yes,\" Thelaglan answers, with some apparent measure of amusement in his voice despite his matter-of-fact expression. \"It is difficult to translate into your language properly, but it means \'bright spear\', or something like it. That may help you remember. I hear that you wish to know more of our langauge?\" Curiously enough, the elf himself does not mount a horse, but rather stands, encouraging Keldean\'s mount to fall into step with the others with a softly-spoken word in the elven tongue.

Keldean has seen how fast Giliath can move across the land, and while impressed by it, he also knows that he can never match such speeds. He\'ll ride. He\'s tired and needs the practice, anyway. \"Yes.. I was trying to learn it. A man in Bree was teaching me.\" He thumbs the reins, \"Sindarin is a lot different.\" Then the youth asks curiously, \"What did you say to the horse? Can it understand you? I didn\'t know that it was trained like that..\"

[Mirinthel(#30248)] A thoughtful furrow creases Thelaglan\'s brow, and his timbre speaks much of his curiosity in the matter. \"A man in Bree! That seems curious to me. It is not a language any of my kind use there. Do you know his name?\"

With a gentle pat on the horse\'s shoulder, Thelaglan now shares a delighted smile between Keldean and his mount. \"It is more complicated than the words I have spoken - they would translate poorly into your Westron, and the meaning would be lost. But if I were to try... I would say that I asked him kindly to journey swiftly and safely. Though he may not understand the words so plainly, he need not be trained to know that I and my kin mean him well.\"

Up ahead, a grey-clad scout with a longbow at his back converses quietly with Mirinthel and one other before climbing gracefully astride a dappled grey mare and gallopping off ahead of the group. The elves seem to pay this no mind as their ranks solidify behind the ambassador and captain.

\"His name is Aaron Clothweaver. He has some papers that he studies. He said they teach him Sindarin.\" Keldean chews thoughtfully on his lower lip for a moment, \"I suppose he hasn\'t taught me very well, so I guess they aren\'t that helpful.\" His brown eyes shift to the horse and he reaches to pat the beast on the neck. \"I wonder what horses would say if they could talk..\" The teen is too absorbed to notice immediately what\'s going on, but the galloping draws his attention and he looks ahead, watching. \"Where is he going?\"

[Mirinthel(#30248)] \"Very curious,\" Thelaglan echoes, appearing absorbed in his own thoughts for a moment before Keldean\'s questions bring him out of his reverie. \"Ah, but horses have plenty to say to those who know how to listen! It is difficult for your kind, I think,\" he continues very matter-of-factly.

Upon following the boy\'s gaze to the front of the column, Thelaglain nods in the direction of the rider soon to disappear from mortal eyes. \"He is a scout,\" the elf answers, the Westron word taking a moment to form. \"He shall ride ahead and alert us of any danger upon the road through the Yfelwyd. And if he finds nothing, he shall ride on to alert the valley guard that we come.\"

\"How long will it take to get there? Does he know about the trolls around the bridge?\" Keldean watches the scout disappear ahead on the road, then looks back down to Thelaglan. This is only the beginning of the questions, the youth hasn\'t even completely warmed up to the elf yet and Breelanders are capable of being endlessly curious.

[Mirinthel(#30248)] \"For him? Not long, if he is given no cause to return to our party,\" Thelaglan answers, a brow quirked upon his forehead at Keldean\'s curiousity. \"If there are trolls, then he is likely to return and warn the Tirith, only to start ahead once more. He is far more likely to escape them unnoticed than are we. Tell me, Keldean... have you anything with which to protect yourself?\" The elf\'s seemingly ever-present smile betrays no trace of worry at the possibility of their party being waylaid.

The ongoing friendly nature and smiles of Thelaglan go a long way in easing some of Keldean\'s discomfort, but the teen looks ahead again, troubled. \"There -is- a troll. It lives in a cave under the bridge. It\'s.. a few days ahead on foot, but I\'m not sure how long it would take us to get there moving faster.\"

The teen grows quiet, his frown deepening at the question. \"No, I don\'t have anything. There aren\'t many real weapons in Bree.\"

Thelaglan chuckles brightly, a strange contrast to Keldean\'s apparent discomfort the elf\'s face, however, betrays no ill-will. \"Perhaps you ought to ride as a scout as well! This troll... you would do well to tell the guard captains of it. If they take kindly to you, then perhaps you shall be armed as well.\"

His amused expression withers in time, however, as the elven party now finds themselves walking upon a road more densely surrounded by trees. Another rider splits off from the part of Tirith at the fore, this one circling around to the back of the column, only to disappear into the trees. Thelaglan\'s straight-forward timbre returns to his musically-spoken Westron. \"But it is for the best that you remain here, if aught goes awry.\"

\"Do the guards speak my tongue? I could tell them what I know. Though, Giliath knows too. He was there when it attacked me.\" Keldean grows more somber at the memory, his remembered and continuing fear of the creature thick and heavy. \"I\'m not sure I could be a scout. I\'m not a very good rider.. and I wouldn\'t know what to do.\" He looks down at the elf again, searching now to see if Thelaglan wears any weapons. \"Are you a warrior?\"

[Mirinthel(#30248)] \"For my part, though not in title,\" the elf answers with a shrug of wiry shoulders. \"I am a teller of stories, and a craftsman also. Yet I am good with a bow and spear at need, as are most of my kin. I doubt you need worry for your safety. The elves do not lightly invite company in their midst, and will not leave you at need for protection here.\" Thelaglan\'s words bear undertones of pride begotten by many years.

Keldean nods, not seeming as reassured as he ought to be as his gaze lingers to find Mirinthel up ahead. The bitterness is difficult to swallow, but he holds back unpleasant comments, trusting in Giliath to talk with the elf as he said he would. When the teen looks back to Thelaglan, he changes the topic. \"Do you think you would mind helping me learn a bit more of Sindarin?\"

[Mirinthel(#30248)] This notion furrows Thelaglan\'s brow once more in a moment\'s hesitation. \"I could try, but my way is much more inclined to wood and welding than to words and teaching. I fear you would find my tutelage poor. But tell me, young Keldean,\" the elf muses, glancing up to the boy from where he walks beside his horse. \"Why do you wish to learn Sindarin so? What would you wish to learn to say?\"

\"Giliath\'s wife, Caelwen, doesn\'t speak my tongue and I\'d like to be able to talk to her. And.. if I\'m traveling to near the lands where your people live, there are probably others that don\'t understand me, right?\" Keldean reaches up to push back some auburn curls from his face, his expression thoughtful now. After a moment he asks in a completely different direction of conversation, \"Did she ask you to walk with me so that you could watch me?\" The teen\'s gaze strays to Mirinthel again.

[Mirinthel(#30248)] \"Fewer than you would expect, I think,\" the craftsman responds. \"Those raised in the valley of Rivendell come to know the common tongue well. Caelwen has only come to live there of late - it has been years, but to the elves, it is not a long time. Perhaps Giliath would tell you more of it, were you to ask him.\"

The young Breeman\'s last question brings a bright smile to Thelaglan\'s face, and laughter dances behind his eyes as he speaks. \"Ai, you know of it then? I was all too glad to agree to the ambassador\'s request. You are a curious person. She must think so, too.\" If there is any deeper import behind the sentiment, Thelaglan\'s expression doesn\'t speak of it, those his eyes remain a moment longer upon the human.

Keldean\'s smile fades when Thelaglan confirms his suspicion, a glum expression returning to his face. \"I didn\'t know, I guessed. Most elves aren\'t very friendly like you are, so.. you don\'t have to pretend.\" He says quietly, his brows drawing together in frustration as he assumes that the elf is only being so nice for a reason. \"She doesn\'t trust me.\"

[Mirinthel(#30248)] Thelaglan shakes his head, looking to the boy with genuine puzzlement. \"I have no need to pretend, young Keldean. For my part, I am quite poor at it. I daresay that I have found it more a human notion in my time among them.\" What might otherwise sound belittling is accompanied by a confused furrow upon the elf\'s brow. \"Mirinthel would have you watched, yes, but I am not certain that you know full well the reasons why.\"

Mirinthel. So that\'s what her name is. Giliath had mentioned it once back before he joined the group. Keldean watches Thelaglan carefully, uncertain now. He\'s never known an elf to lie, but he hasn\'t known that many elves, either. \"No.. I don\'t, but she was very angry last night so I guess it\'s because she thinks I might make trouble. Did she tell you why?\"

[Mirinthel(#30248)] The craftsman chuckles once more. \"I do not think you troublesome, Keldean. I cannot imagine that Mirinthel does either. You are one young boy, unarmed and unaware of the ways of the elves. What harm does that present to us?\" As he speaks, he too looks ahead to the front of the column where Mirinthel rides with the Tirith. \"But alas, it is hard to know her way. We do not speak with many men from Bree, let alone take them with us. Even those such as the ambassador, to have lived in times when men and elves were more commonly in each other\'s company, have grown cautious. I was not told of further reasons for which I was to remain at your side, but why should it be otherwise for a young boy without the means to defend himself upon the road?\"

Keldean doesn\'t much like being referred to as a boy, much less a -young- boy, but compared to the age of the elves it\'s difficult to grow too offended. He slowly winds the leather of the reins around his hand, turning his fingers a brighter red as he cuts off the flow of his blood with the fidgeting. \"That makes sense.. I hadn\'t thought of that.\" He has a mildy embarrassed expression on his face, then adds in a quiet voice. \"Sorry.\" The teen unwinds the leather and moves to slide down off the horse, choosing to walk for a bit. \"What kind of craft do you do?\"

[Mirinthel(#30248)] This change of demeanor seems to be enough for Thelaglan. The embarrassment in the boy\'s manner is not lost on him, though it would seem that any lingering frustration is. Keldean\'s apology begets no more than nod, and a pat on the shoulder for his horse. \"Ah! My craft. If there were aught that you would be wise to learn from me, the making of lamps would be it. I imagine it would sound a bit mundane to you, but the lamps of the elves are quite special to see.\" The elf\'s tenor carries an audible enthusiasm at this. \"I do not imagine you have seen them before, but perhaps you shall.\"

\"Mirinthel said that I can\'t go into the valley.. So probably not.\" Keldean says with a lofty sigh. If the elf knew how tremendously hard the youth is trying to act mature about this all, he might be impressed. \"What makes them special?\"

[Mirinthel(#30248)] \"At the hands of the elves, glass can be wrought into shapes of exquisite grace and beauty. The likeness of a swan, a tree blossoming with light...\" Here Thelaglan\'s voice falter for a moment, and the young human\'s first words are processed. \"That is so? Unfortunate, I should say, but perhaps not surprising,\" she says, shaking his head slowly.

Keldean isn\'t in the mood to get upset again over the unfair decision (at least to him) that Mirinthel made, and tries to pull the conversation back to the glass. \"So you shape glass? What other things have you made.. is it difficult?\" There will be a great many questions to follow, the Breelander\'s curiosity difficult to snuff once it\'s been sparked.

[Mirinthel(#30248)] A further change in Keldean\'s manner is noted, and for a moment\'s pause, Thelaglan appears to study the young man\'s face with a quiet focus. \"It is a long-studied art, yes, and requires much in the way of patience,\" he begins at length, the final word lent a certain weight that suggests further meaning beyond the craft they discuss. But curiosity is welcomed with ready explanation long beyond the point where the last of the elven party disappears into the heavily-forested reaches of the Great East Road.