Say what you need to say

The next day, as I was speaking to those in the camp, I met an elf-maiden named Narlinn. She was worried about a friend who had been assigned to keep watch over the Bruinen Gorges. She believed him to be distracted by his fancy for another elf-maiden from Rivendell and wanted me to see how he fared.

I found the elven scout, Arrod, keeping watch over the road from high above on the hillside. He told me of his wish to find gifts for his love, but he dared not leave his post. Realizing I could help keep the camp safe and have a part in uniting two lovers, I gladly offered to find the gifts that he sought for his beloved.

He first asked for a pristine feather from a hendroval. I looked for nests upon the highest peaks until I found one with such a feather in it. Upon returning it to him, he then asked for a mauve lily. Such flowers are exceedingly rare, and I could only hope to be fortunate enough to find one growing nearby.


I went down to the Ford of Bruinen and headed south to the Blooming Fens. Many wildflowers grew in the area, and I was almost smitten by the beauty of the riverbank and had a dance! I had to refrain, as darkness would come soon, and it would be difficult enough to find such a flower in the sunshine!

As luck would have it, I chanced upon the perfect mauve lily in the Fens! "Such a love must be meant to be!" I thought to myself, joy filling my heart for the two of them.

Upon happily returning to Arrod and offering the lily, I was finally told of the game he had been playing. It seemed that he had been pretending to be smitten with someone else, but it was really Narlinn he had loved all along! Using the hendroval feather and the lily, he crafted a beautiful necklace and asked me to bring it to Narlinn and pledge his undying love to her!

I did as he asked, but Narlinn was not to be fooled! Or, rather, she was already fooled! She did not believe Arrod's heart sang for her, but she instead wished me to bring the necklace to Faimir, Arrod's supposed love in Rivendell! No words of mine could convince her otherwise, so I had no recourse but to bring Arrod's gift back to him.

He was shocked at her disbelief in his regard but wisely chose not to abandon his post to find her, and I left him to his grief. "Perhaps there is a lesson to be learned from this," I thought to myself as I walked away.

With Light,
Kaleigh