A Bitter Farewell...

Keldean had begged the elves give him time to stop in Bree so that he can collect a few things for the trip. He had tried to track down his sister, but ran into Cordelia instead. It\'s been a few hours, evening is descending on the land, and the teen is finally returning leading a saddled brown horse with rolled bundle tied to it. He looks upset, his face drawn in pain, but there\'s no mark on the youth.

Caelwen is beside an old oak tree with a cloak of grey about her. She watches Keldean steadily from the distance as he approaches the group of elves.

[Mirinthel(#30248)] Among the shadows of a stand of grey tents is a vague cluster of tall, hooded figures. Their numbers are difficult to discern and their voices are hushed, kept to only their own company. The occasional gust of wind lifts their hoods to reveal grim faces and the occasional errant word in Sindarin.

In their midst is one whose garb is black, or at least so much can be said for what can be seen of it when the chill autumn wind bids her cloak to part. Silver-grey eyes find Keldean\'s approach from beneath her cloak, flickering keenly like the circlet upon her pale brow as she steps apart from the close-knit company of her kin. \"Breeman,\" comes a voice in surprisingly fluent Westron. \"Have you come ready to depart?\"

Keldean slows to a stop, his brown eyes looking around the group for Giliath or Elathrad. He\'s surprised when Mirinthel speaks up and follows her voice to her figure. \"Yes. I have a horse too, so I won\'t slow you down.\" He hadn\'t had the animal before venturing into town, and while the beast is nothing special, it looks travel-worthy at least. Caelwen may recognize it as the horse he brought back with them from the ranger camp over the summer.

Caelwen watches Keldean until he is near to the camp, and then her gaze breaks away. She moves further within the grouping of tents.

[Mirinthel(#30248)] Though the hood of her dark cloak remains drawn, Mirinthel\'s aged features flash in a fleeting - yet bright - smile beneath its drape. \"That is well,\" she answers, again in almost musical Westron, \"For it is a tiring road. I hope that, as you reach your destination, you find it is worth your effort upon the way.\" The ambassador\'s timbre is kind, but the sharpness of her focus is not easily missed.

[Cordelia(#1394)] It hasn\'t been hard for Cordelia to follow Keldean, the young woman asking at the south gate of Bree after him and then hurrying out not long after he has left. And here she comes, hurrying along the road after him. Though still some ways up the road from Keldean, she pauses now--frowning slightly and slowing her pace, as if uncertain whether or not she wants to follow.

Some of the emotional pain the teen is feeling fades at Mirinthel\'s warm smile and he returns it with one of his own. Keldean\'s gaze follows Caelwen as she withdraws, \"I am trying to learn Sindarin.. I know that Caelwen doesn\'t understand my tongue.\" He turns his attention back to Mirinthel. \"Are we leaving now, or camping for the night?\" He hasn\'t noticed Cordelia yet, it seems.

[Mirinthel(#30248)] \"We shall depart before morning fully dawns tomorrow,\" Mirinthel says. \"Please get what rest you may tonight, for it will be harder to come by once we have passed beyond the Breelands.\" At this, she indicates the clearing in which the Imladhrim guards prepare fallen brush and wood, inviting the boy to sit beside what soon shall be a modest fire. Though the evening deepens on, her keen eyes do not miss the hesitant approach of another down the road however, the ambassador says nothing as of yet.

[Cordelia(#1394)] The figure on the road still hesitates--turning around to look back toward the direction of Bree\'s south gate, and then to the small group of travelers ahead--perhaps realizing suddenly how dark it is and how far she actually is from Bree itself. Then with a frown, Cordelia makes up her mind and strides down the road toward the travelers. She has at least managed to remember to bring her thick cloak with her--her hood has been up, but now she pushes it back as she approaches.

Keldean nods, perhaps a bit shy in front of this elf he doesn\'t know. \"I\'ll tie the horse first.. \" It\'s a brown mare with black mane and tail. It looks to have been well-tended, it\'s time in the stables of the Pony having done the horse some good. He turns to tend to the animal and his gaze catches the approach of the young woman. The youth stiffens and asks in a suddenly thick voice, \"Cordelia.. What are you doing here?\"

Mirinthel stands unmoving, hood still drawn though there is little left of daylight from which to shield her eyes. Faint sparks of a fire spring up behind her, its light falling upon the faces of her kindred, the focus of many bent upon this new arrival. \"A friend of yours?\" Mirinthel muses in an aside to Keldean. The shadow of a smile remains upon her lips, though her eyes bear a discerning light in their depths that never leaves the young woman\'s face.

[Cordelia(#1394)] \"I....\" Cordelia frowns, shifting uncomfortably at the teen\'s question and the elf\'s gaze. \"I ...I don\'t know,\" she says, biting at her lower lip. A brief glance is given up to the elf, and then the young woman looks away again, to the ground, her shoes--anywhere but at Keldean, though her voice gets shakey as she answers. \"I couldn\'t leave it at that, Keldean.\"

Keldean watches Cordelia, motionless now as one hand holds the restless horse and the other hangs at his side. He looks back at Mirinthel and nods, but his face is far from happy. That pain has returned, his heart slowly being mangled simply by being in Cordelia\'s presence again. He turns his gaze back to the black-haired woman, waiting in silence or simply unable to say more.

[<#30248>] Firelight dances in the glint of silver at Mirinthel\'s forehead, but the light in her ancient eyes is much more difficult to discern as, with one last glance between the young man and woman, the ambassador takes a silent step back towards the fire. As if waiting upon that very occasion, a stern young scout comes immediately to her side. \" Are their two that shall ride with us, Gwethril? The Thandyr have only made space in camp for one other.\"

[Cordelia(#1394)] Keldean\'s answer does nothing to ease Cordelia\'s hesitation, and she looks up at him now, a frown creasing her forehead and uncertainty in her eyes. \"I...you don\'t really love me then at all, do you?\" she asks him. She looks quickly in the direction of the elven scout as he speaks, but then her gaze returns to Keldean. \"You think I left you because I didn\'t love you, is that it?\"

Keldean glances at the scout, but has no comprehension of what is spoken and looks back to Cordelia. \"I never thought I would see you again. What do you want me to say? I told you why I\'m going.. I\'ll come back.\" He turns his gaze to the elves again, checking to make sure they aren\'t angry about this unexpected visitor to the camp.

[<#30248>] \" \" One only,\" Mirinthel answers the scout in a murmur, her fluent Westron now forsaken for a far more musical tongue. \" We shall see about the woman.\" For a moment the scout\'s stare too is a weight upon Cordelia and Keldean, but he soon fades into the shadows surrounding the tents. Though there is no apparent anger in the elven eyes that pass in and out of notice around the camp, but neither is there warmth or welcome. For the moment, the humans\' voices are all that is to be heard beneath the merry crackle of a campfire heedless to the tension of its surroundings.

[Cordelia(#1394)] The elven eyes are perhaps felt by Cordelia, for she shifts about uncomfortably, scuffing at the ground with the boot of her toe. \"Yes...you said you\'d be back,\" she answers the teen, her eyes full of sudden pain as she looks up at him again. \"I...I believe you. I just miss you terribly, Keldean. And Jacquelyn, she misses you.....what could you possibly accomplish by going to find Seeker?\"

Keldean looks over at Mirinthel, uncertainty on his face, then moves closer to Cordelia. He speaks in softer words. \"Jacquelyn understands me. If you tell her I\'m going so I can try to help Seeker, she\'ll understand that. I\'m not accomplishing anything here in Bree. Nobody likes me now and maybe if I see Rhifaroth, I can .. find some way to make it up to him. I don\'t know. It\'s better than staying here.\"

He takes in a heavy breath, squeezing his eyes closed for a moment as if the sight of her were some kind of toxin, infecting his blood. Then he rushes to speak further, before she has a chance to respond. \"We can\'t be together.. Not right now. I already asked Giliath and his friends and if I change my mind now they\'ll think I\'m nothing more than a lovesick child. I worked off my crimes to Nob. I need to amend with Seeker.\"

Mirinthel no longer faces the pair, but stands still and silent as a dark silhouette against the firelight. Her expression is no long illuminated, but it is safe to assume that she and all present are keenly aware of the two humans, whether or not their words are plainly heard. Most are no longer seen, but a small group has convened on the far side of the fire, silver cups in hand with steam curling from them.

[Cordelia(#1394)] \"All right....if that\'s the way you want it to be....go on. I _still_ don\'t understand what you can possibly do for him. It\'s not as if he wanted to see us or speak to us, but if that\'s what you want...\" Cordelia shrugs and glances again toward the elves, who have fallen silent. \"They don\'t want me here anyhow, and I _know_ that Rhifaroth doesn\'t want to see me. Far from it. I wonder, though...have you asked Giliath? How could I possibly make amends?\"

Keldean watches her carefully now, and when she gives that shrug, as if what he\'s trying to do is unimportant or meaningless.. The youth clenches his teeth tightly, a tormented expression on his face. He shakes his head at her question, then turns sharply and begins walking towards the fire he had been invited to earlier.

[Mirinthel(#30248)] The young Breeman\'s approach is watched over the rims of of their cups. Mirinthel half-turns her head, her profile now visible against the firelight. Her stillness suggests keen attention now paid to the pair, perhaps - but as of yet, she says nothing of a matter in which she has so little part.

[Cordelia(#1394)] \"Keldean...\" Cordelia calls his name softly, taking a step to the elven camp, then hesitating. \"I\'m sorry...\" she frowns toward the elves there. \"I won\'t be long. I just...well, I don\'t want Keldean leaving on bad terms, is all,\" she explains to the elves. Then to Keldean, \"It\'s not that I don\'t think you should try...I think I\'m just scared for you, Keldean. And I\'m scared you won\'t ever come back.\"

Keldean feels his resolve slipping, the endless strings she seems to hold on him rebinding one at a time. He stops, halfway to the campfire, fighting some inner conflict again. Finally he summons up some anger to battle the overwhelming feelings of fear and desire. The youth looks back. \"Now you know how I felt.\" He states, and though his voice cracks, he sounds resolute. \"You should get back before the gate closes..\"

The human teen moves the rest of the way to the fire and sits down, barely able to keep from watching to see if she stays or leaves.

[Mirinthel(#30248)] At the young woman\'s address, Mirinthel turns her head more fully to speak for her kinsmen. \"Say what you must, and worry not for saying it here,\" she echoes, a half-smile quirked upon her pale features that is barely visible upon her shadowed face. This permission now spoken, the others still present around the fire seem marginally more at ease, though still caution still hushes their voices and sharpens their focus as Keldean sits across the fire from them. To him Mirinthel offers an aside. \"You must get what rest you can, young Breeman,\" she muses, a slender brow quirked upon her pale forehead. \"The night deepens.\"

[Cordelia(#1394)] \"Fine.\" Though Cordelia\'s voice is void of emotion, there\'s anger flashing in her eyes. She takes some time to study the elven group, then draws her cloak around her and her hood up once more before she turns about to start walking back toward Bree.

Keldean gives a small nod at Mirinthel\'s advice, his gaze routed on the glowing embers of the fire for a long time. He slowly counts in the hundreds, trying to control his own emotions. Finally he stands again after a furtive glance back to be certain Cordelia is gone, and moves to tend to the poor brown mare that\'s been neglected of it\'s unsaddling for the night. It will be a while yet before Keldean calms down enough to get any rest.

[Mirinthel(#30248)] As the young man moves to tend his horse, near-silent steps follow in his wake from the camp. \"Keldean,\" comes Mirinthel\'s voice, once again in Westron that is almost too perfect as she speaks the name she has learned from his conversation with the young woman. \"We must speak.\"

Caelwen is swiftly approaching now from behind Mirinthel. Her curls uncoil slightly, she moves so quickly, but her step is ever silent. \" Why was he speaking with that woman?\" she asks the other elf, her voice a low and velvet pouring of elvish. \" She was the one who harmed Rhifaroth. The woman is not to come with us. Is she?\"

Keldean is pulling the saddle off of the animal, his arms strong, but he seems a bit clumsy with handling the large item. He looks up, startled when he hears his name. He hadn\'t heard the elf\'s approach and quickly he blinks moisture from his eyes. \"Is this a bad place for the horse?\" He asks, looking around. Caelwen\'s words are met with the usual expression of incomprehension on his face.

[<#30248>] Caelwen\'s words still Mirinthel from her stride, and for a moment, her silvered-green eyes are steeled upon Keldean. \" No, Caelwen. She shall not follow,\" the Noldo breathes, her Sindarin somewhat harsher now than before until she turns again to the young man with Westron words. \'Your horse is fine. I would speak of other matters of discretion to you. You were followed here by one who clearly knows your intent to leave. Does she know where you go?\'

Caelwen inclines her head toward Mirinthel, her eyes lingering on Keldean. \" Good. If-- if I knew where my husband is,\" there is a brief falter in her words. \" he would be able to tell you better, but I suppose it does not matter if she is not coming.\"

Keldean feels ice run through him at her question. \"I.. told her that I was going with you, to Imlad. Giliath never said anything about it being a secret..\" The teen responds with a nervous tone and his gaze strays to Caelwen for a moment. \"Cordelia won\'t follow us.\" He says is a quieter voice, guessing at Cael\'s concerns though he has no idea what\'s being said.

[<#30248>] Caelwen\'s words still ringing in her ears, Mirinthel spares a quiet aside for the Silvan. \" You must tell me more of this later, Caelwen. You and Giliath.\" This for her kinswoman, the Noldo then turns to the young man with a frightful focus that is all but palpable even beneath the cover of her hood. \'Then a grave mistake has been made by more than one in this camp,\' Mirinthel murmurs to Keldean, her Westron turning icy upon the sentiment. \'Tell me truly,\' she continues, her manner marked by a patience that strains against the chill upon the spoken word. \'Are there others who know where you intend to go? If you do not answer truthfully, then I shall have no choice but to see you back to Bree tonight.\'

Caelwen falls silent and takes a small step back. Her gaze goes between the two, wary and perhaps a touch confused.

[Keldean(#23332)] \"I didn\'t know.. I swear I didn\'t!\" Keldean counters very quickly, his tone growing more upset as his feelings are still rather high from the encounter with Cordelia. \"I told her.. and her friend heard, Arabella. She\'s just a girl.. eleven or twelve.\" The teen pulls the blanket from the horses back, clenching it nervously in his hands. \"And, Conall, he\'s a hobbit.\" The last thing he wants is to go back to Bree -now-.

[Mirinthel(#30248)] \'I believe you,\' Mirinthel answers, though her tone holds no reassurance. \'And I hope that truth will continue to be one of your virtues here.\' At this, the ambassador steps closer, at last pushing back the dark hood of her cloak to reveal a grave portrait of a face, her eyes lit with a cold fire that fades the very circlet set upon her forehead. \'Tell me why you would join us. Tell me why it is worth this risk you have put upon my kin. I would hear it in your words. And if I find that you have misled Giliath and Elathrad, then you shall find the road home a cold one.\'

Caelwen\'s eyes focus on Mirinthel. Her lips press, then open with a silent sigh. Her gaze returns to Keldean. \" You should speak in Sindarin,\" she says to him. \" If you keep trying I\'m sure you\'ll get it right.\"

Keldean meets her gaze, resisting the instinct to back away from this elven threat. Where or where is Giliath?! The youth twists the horse blanket in his hands, his nerves on edge. Caelwen speaks, but her words are lost on the boy. \"Rhifaroth is in Imlad, and I need to make ammends to him for the crimes I did. I didn\'t mislead Giliath or Elathrad. I don\'t understand.. what risk? What is Caelwen saying?\"

Mirinthel studies Keldean carefully as he speaks, then turning a pale hand to the young Breeman. \'Wait,\' she murmurs abruptly before turning once more to Caelwen and her native speech, leaving the boy to his worries for a moment further. \" The boy says that he must make amends with the man Rhifaroth... that this is why he must come to Imladris. Do you know these crimes of which he speaks? Does he know of the woman\'s role in Rhifaroth\'s harm?\"

Caelwen\'s bright eyes shift again to Mirinthel. She hesitates before responding, shaking her head uncertainly. \" My husband does not tell me everything,\" she answers quietly. \" He shelters me. I do know that this one,\" she gestures in a small, fluid motion toward Keldean, \" was longing for that woman but doesn\'t anymore. They both tricked Rhifaroth somehow. She was more knowing of it than he.\"

Her head tilts in a thoughtful pause. \" She is more dangerous than he is, I think. This is what I have known from being around them,\" the young Silvan explains, \" But much of it has been confirmed by my husband. He explained very little to me and then we did not speak about them again after they were left in Bree. We have had,\" a small regretful shrug, bright eyes dropping, \" other things on our minds.\"

[Keldean(#23332)] And worry, the boy does. He continues twisting the blanket in his grasp, a tight ball of nerves that even the mare next to him starts to pick up on. The horse grows more restless, nickering quietly. Keldean never pulls his gaze from the two elves, struggling to understand them but he is still too ignorant of the language to pick up anything beyond a word here or there.

[Mirinthel(#30248)] A moment of softness and concern is spared for Caelwen, but more cannot be afforded now. Mirinthel turns again to Keldean, her voice cold and terse once more as it returns to Westron. \"It is a risk I will not explain here,\" she murmurs, the timbre of her voice doing much to dismiss the matter. \"You have a choice before you, Keldean. Though I fear that nothing you would say will bring you into the haven of the Imladhrim now.\"

Caelwen\'s face turns with some concern as if toward Keldean-- wait, no. She is looking at his horse. \" Ai, love!\" she sings to it. The horse\'s head swings toward her as if it listens. \" Do not become fretful at the petty concerns of the secondborn! Come, come here if you wish it.\" She holds a hand out to the mare and it begins to walk toward the younger elf, calming now.

Keldean stares at Mirinthel in shock. \"What? Why?? I haven\'t done anything! If I knew that it was a secret I wouldn\'t have said anything, I promise you! Talk to Giliath, he knows me better than Caelwen.. she doesn\'t speak our language, she might have things mistaken.\" The youth sounds anguished, his hopes shattering. \"What did she tell you? Please.. give me a chance to explain.\" Caelwen\'s attention to his horse is ignored as he focuses his attention on Mirinthel.

[Mirinthel(#30248)] \"I know very little of what has happened between you and Rhifaroth,\" Mirinthel answers, her voice momentarily raised to be heard above the young man\'s frantic pleas. \"You are welcome to explain your crimes to me, but that will not serve you as you wish it. Whether you had knowledge of a secret or not does not change that it has been spoken. You may regret that which is done, but it is done nonetheless.\"

Returning to a strained hush once again, the unstable balance of Mirinthel\'s patience appears somewhat restored. \"Your choice, young Breeman, is to return home now or to make the journey, only to be left upon the moors while word of your arrival is sent to Rhifaroth. If he will hear your pleas, he shall meet you upon the moors.\"

\"Why can\'t I go in? You\'re punishing me for something I had no idea I was doing wrong? Because I told some people where I was going?\" Keldean can\'t help but protest as her decree sends a feeling a nausea through him. It\'s as if they dangled a gift in front of him and then snatched it away.

The youth fights to keep from overreacting, trying to think through his outrage. His voice softens to a more tolerable level, but the pleading tone is still present, \"Whether I go or not doesn\'t change that the people know.. and it\'s far from here. I won\'t tell another soul, I swear it. Everyone tells me that elves are noble, and good.. and I only want to see how you live and make up the wrongs I did to Rhifaroth. I don\'t know any other way.\"

Caelwen cups her slender hand over the mare\'s nose, murmuring to her, and slides her fingers up to the mane. \" What is the boy going on about?\" she asks, completely calm herself.

[Mirinthel(#30248)] \"It is not my place to punish you. Neither is it my place to coddle you,\" Mirinthel retorts before the boy\'s pleas soften. \"The way in to the valley of my kin is a secret to all but those trusted by its lord, and none pass in or out without his favor. That trust is not idly granted. Were the path found by even one of those whom you have told...\" Here the Noldo shakes her head, her distaste for this notion being the first thing upon which the her Westron stumbles. She begins anew with recollected poise, though the rumble of thunder remains ominously beneath her calmness. \"I have spent many an age as an ambassador between Elves and Men, and not even I have the right to place such a risk upon my kin. I do not fault you for that which you did without knowledge, Keldean. But I will not be held responsible for any ill it may bring upon the valley. Safe passage through the bleak lands beyond the shaws. A guard for your safety. Have your word with Rhifaroth if you must, but these are the terms in which you shall have our aid upon your way.\"

[Giliath(#9838)] Giliath emerges from the edge of the trees, his eyes searching at once for Caelwen and not until he finds her does he relax, even if only slightly.

Quieter still, but the strain carrying over into her fluent Sindarin, Mirinthel answers Caelwen in passing. \" He has told many Breefolk of where he intends to go, among which is this woman you say has committed crimes against Rhifaroth. We must assume that any passage will be followed. He may follow us to over the moors, but Rhifaroth must meet him there, if they are to speak. I will not lead an admitted criminal to one who seeks refuge in the Last Homely House. Less when he may be followed.\"

Keldean draws in a ragged breath, trying very hard to stay in control of his emotions, but the teen looks like he\'s ready to either burst into tear or murder a goat. \"I don\'t understand..\" His tone is almost bleak now. There are half a dozen things she could have said that he might not have questioned, but this reason strikes so horridly unfair to the youth that he can\'t even fathom how it applies to him. \"If the way into the valley is a secret.. what difference does it make?\"

Caelwen nods once toward Mirinthel while removing a burr from the mare\'s mane with slender and nimble fingers. \" Sensible,\" she says, not glancing once at Giliath. \" I didn\'t understand why the Imladhrim were going to let him in anyway. Seems dangerous, in my mind. My son is in the Valley.\"

Giliath has come up beside his wife, and now he looks down at her slightly puzzled. \" Our son is in the Valley, yes,\" he says. \" What has that to do with anything?\" One hand is laid on her shoulder and left there, as if he can hardly bear to be without even this small contact. Dark eyes move to Mirinthel and then to Keldean. \'Good even,\' he says to the boy, courteously.

[Mirinthel(#30248)] \"It makes every difference, if it is to stay a secret. It is a safety bought by the discretion of many. And you have all but invited a village to follow you to our very doorstep,\" Mirinthel answers cooly. \"If there is more that you do not understand, then speak your questions. Otherwise, I shall not trouble with restating that which need not be justified. You say that you wish to make amends - if Rhifaroth too wishes for that, then it shall be yours. Tell me, then, what more you would ask of those whose trust has been forsaken.\" The veil of Mirinthel\'s patience grows ever thinner, the flare behind her eyes as bright as a forge. A glance is cast aside to Giliath as he arrives, but nothing is spoken to him of yet beyond what her eyes can tell.

Keldean drags his brown eyes to Giliath when the elf approaches, \"Tell her I didn\'t know. You never told me the trip was...\" He begs, his words heavy with distress even as they trail off. Mirinthel\'s decree pulls his attention back and he listens quietly, the unyielding tone not lost on the teen. At great effort he manages to restrain himself and nods. \"Okay.. \" He finally says in a desolate fashion. \"I\'ll go to see Rhifaroth.\" Hopefully she doesn\'t expect a thank you.

Caelwen\'s eyes widen as Giliath speaks her face turns up to him. \" I meant only...\" her voice begins to descend gradually into sorrow. \" ...that Abanangel is safe there, and secondborn who would harm him should not go to the Valley.\"

Her fair and smooth face starts to crumple into sorrow a moment before she turns her body in toward Giliath, hiding her expression. Her brow touches his shoulder and she whispers, slight sounds that would likely hardly be heard by the rest. \" I miss you so much!\"

[Giliath(#9838)] The same falling into grief darkens Giliath\'s eyes and takes his attention away from Keldean. To the boy, he barely manages a reply though still it is fair toned and kind. \"I will speak for you,\" he says, before all of his thought and care is taken by his wife. And with mingled sorrow and love in his face, he leads her away.

[Caelwen(#24844)]

As the pair depart, a small, faint sound of a sob can be heard from Caelwen. And then they are vanished into the forest.

Mirinthel nods curtly, the set of her jaw and furrow of her brow like stone. \"Then get what rest you may before the morn. The guard has set aside a cot for you. We leave at dawn.\" Saying nothing further for the moment, the Noldo strides across the camp, snapping aside the flap to her tent and disappearing inside with no further word to the other Imladhrim.

Keldean feels a spark of hope when Giliath says he\'ll speak for him. The teen visibly calms. That small promise from the vinter easing his crushed feelings and restores some of the good image of the elven people in the youth\'s eyes. After watching in abject silence as all three move away the young Breelander turns back to the horse finally, trying to sort through the turbulent night of emotions. He finishes settling the beast for the night, then moves off to a shadowy stand of trees a bit away from the group, seeking solitude. He doesn\'t feel nearly as welcome as he did before Cordelia followed him into the camp.