Kraes squinted up at the sky. Bright. Too bright. Using the unicorn's grace, he plummeted back into the bushes that edged the forest. "Gods, Kraes, why Rivendell? Of all places?" He murmured to himself, planning to leave at the first possible moment. But where to go next? The shire? Lots of hobbits to terrorize there...

As the jet-black unicorn turned in the direction of the Shire, a movement caught his eye. Elves? 'Of course stupid. Rivendell.' All of a sudden changing his plans, Kraes snuck out of his hiding place and down the path. Feeling very visible against the emerald grass, he kept low to the ground. "Where could they be?"

"Hello there, what is youre name?"

Elindomiel walked along the path and an odd sight caught her eye, a jet black unicorn against the emerald grass. It looked beautifull like that... and yet it seemed to be trying to hide. Elindomiel had never met a unicorn, she wasnt even exactly sure they could talk. But she attempted some communication nonetheless, hinting at a singsong animal talk voice in the occcasion that they could indeed not talk and noone would come around and embarress her for thinking that she was trying to have a sensible conversation with a mere voice. Nonetheless the kept that hinting at a minimum in case all unicorns or even just this one COULD indeed talk and would be offended at being at all treated like a non sentient animal.

IT didnt exactly go through her head this way... that would have taken long enough that there would be an awkward silence of her standing there doing nothing considering how to measure the tone in her voice... but it went through her head nonetheless subjecting her to a breif spout of dizziness. Every thing was so complicated when it was new.... and even with familiar things you could never be sure what to expect. She knew that humanoids had completely varied personalities and opinions and in her outer mind she knew the same of more animalistic sentients as well but in her inner mind there was still a bit of hesitation.

Take Koro, for example. How shocked she had been at first by his temper and strong emotions. She was used to the happy go lucky cat-gryphs. Despite the reasons, she knew what she was doing was, in essense, being stereotypical, and she didnt want to be that kind of person, but sometimes you know, you cant help it. She hadnt been this confused since she came to rivendell... things were so different now. New species had been popping up ever since the hobbits....

Centaurs, Gryphons, Now unicorns....

Surely the world was changed. SO said her inner voice. What are you doing going on a massive journey around the known and unknown world? even here in the safe haven of rivendell three new species have already come during our stay that confuse you...

Her inner voice was normally quiet, and it startled her that it spoke so long and clear. But it was right.... these new species did confuse her. They made her feel awkward, downright unproffesional, and she didnt like it at all. Elindomiel could be silly, downright crazy at times but the splinter of Vala in her blood still had its pride. And a little more than was due.

For a moment, she felt the creature was insulting her just by its presence... how dare it confuse her. THen she laughed inwardly at herself for blaming this innocent animal for her own confusion. It looked so cute seemingly rolling on the bright grass.

Suddenly another thought came to her... she only assumed it was innocent because she thought it cute. What if its looks are confusing? WHat if.............

Kraes froze. He knew it had been stupid for him to come out in the middle of the day. Knew it. And now he was paying for it. Slowly turning, the unicorn got his first look at Elindomiel. She was pretty, of course, being an elf, with dark hair. "Me? Kraes, milady. I hope I'm not... intruding?" He put this in a form of a question, to stir pity. Rivendell seemed to be a nice place, and Kraes liked the grass. His voice was deep and liquidy, to say the least, as it seemed to eminate from him instead of come from his mouth. In fact, he never needed to move his jaws. And contrary to belief, his horn did not give him the gift of speech. Tossing his head a bit to clear his vision, Kraes edged towards Elindomiel.

Elindomiel shook her head. "Im just taking a walk... Kra-iss...?"
It was a unicorn name... and the speech was new to her... She had indeed noticed the odd quality to Kraes manner and was more than a little disquited...


"by the way," she added hastily, "My name is Elindomiel, welcome to Rivendell." It was the traditional greeting, and now that she knew Kraes was sentient she was embarressed for not already offering it.

"Kray-iss?" she attempted with a hint of question in her voice. She wanted to pronounce it right.......

p.s. please make a new account for each of youre charectors.

OOC: uh, should I do that and transfer charries or leave it how it is??? *is confused*

IC: Kraes smiled at the elf's pronunciation. Funny, he hadn't talked to anyone in a while that couldn't quite get his name right. Then again, he wasn't sure he could get Elindomiel's name either.

Taking it slow, the unicorn answered, "Kraes. And thankyou, Elindomiel." Good, he pronounced it almost right. Just a wrong accent. "Elindomiel," right this time...

"Is there anything I should know? I'm not sure if I'm staying long..."

"ah no.." she said, still a little shaken for a reason she couldnt quite discern. "Rivendell is a very friendly place... we have a lot of horses... or..." she broke off embarresssed and blushed. She didnt know if she would be offending Kraes. That was that new creature thing again.

"I dont know whether youd rather talk to people... I really dont know much about unicorns."
she had admitted it. There. She was done. She had that over with... but she was still a bit embarressed by it. She tried to recover her dignity.

"I dont know much about Unicorns, Ive really never met one before, but I know youll find that everyone in Rivendell is friendly... and they probably," she finished, "wont be as nervous as me... its just that youre the second new species ive met today.... and the last one... got... angry..."

She smiled at Kraes as she realised that she could be embarressed if she wanted too... she was leaving town today or tommorrow and all the mortals would probably be dead when and if she ever returned....

it wasnt a morbid thought, and after a while such thoughts failed to make her sad. It was a normal way of life for humans and many others, and you ran into it alot when you were an elf.

Kraes chuckled happily. He decided that he liked Elindomiel. She was funny, open.
"Actually, you would be surprised at how dim-witted horses can be. I've yet to have an intelligent conversation with one that goes beyond one-syllable words." He paused, then added an extra thankyou.

It was true. The last horse he spoke to had said, "Me... want... grass." And that was it. Even after Kraes had tried asking why, it mumbled something unintelligent and trotted off.

"Got mad?" the unicorn was confused. "Well, nevermind. I might as well not get into it. I'd actually rather meet some elves... if you're not too busy..."

Elindomiel laughed. "Ive been tryying to get out for fifty years, an hour or so wont make much of a difference. I could show you around, if you like, Kraes." She said. She didnt pronounce it exactly right but she hoped it was close enough.

a dagger of guilt hit Kraes. She'd been waiting for fifty years? Just to get out of Rivendell? Poor thing... for as long as the unicorn had known, one just left. He had known several friends that had wandered away from the herd due to grief or curiousity. Was it a big event in the elven world?

"Oh! Well, you don't have to... I can find my way around..."

Elindomiel sensed some of the emotions in Kraes voice. She laughed. "No, really, she said. "Its quite alright. Whether I leave today or tomorrow or an age from then, no one will miss me or care to notice." The words sounded sad, but her voice was not bitter or even remorsefull... as if she did not care if they did not care.

What would it be like to be an elf? To have no care about time? Unicorns weren't immortal, even if they lived much longer than most creatures. Time still meant something to Kraes. The unicorn wasn't quite sure what he thought about it. On one side, he pitied Elindomiel. On the other, eternal life would be very nice.

Leaving the subject once his brain began to hurt, Kraes nodded his thanks. "And where shall we go first, milady?"

"A well... first I can show you the hall of Fire in the house of Elrond, lord of Rivendell... " She led him over a few bridges covering beautifull waterfalls and under many arches until the reached a rather large building. Just inside was the beautifull Hall of Fire....... A place for feasting, story telling, and song.

Knowing he was gawking, and not doing anything to stop it, Kraes followed the slim Elindomiel, taking in all the sights he could. Everything was so green, so perfect. It reminded him of one grove he found as a colt, when he was wandering. It too had been alone, cut off from most things, and had an almost magical feeling. The evergreen boughs had been a deep green from the rains. Like Rivendell was.

OOC: I guess you can post first in the hall... ellie is leading after all...

(I meant to imply that we were already in the hall...........)

OOC: lol okiedokie!

Meaning youre not done posting

OOC: lol

IC: Knowing he was gawking, and not doing anything to stop it, Kraes followed the slim Elindomiel, taking in all the sights he could. Everything was so green, so perfect. It reminded him of one grove he found as a colt, when he was wandering. It too had been alone, cut off from most things, and had an almost magical feeling. The evergreen boughs had been a deep green from the rains. Like Rivendell was.

"What's it like to live here?" The unicorn stared open mouthed as the large building loomed above him. He, so small, so insignificant, hovered close to Elindomiel.

http://www.invisionfree.com/forums/Endore

argh.... I have posted no lesss than 5 times and it keeps not working

"Its very nice" she said. "Its very elvish, more so than any place east of the sea, they say. The last homely house, they call it. YOu can find anything in the great library, the food is great, the people are friendly, but... Sometimes I find it too safe, too serene, too sheltered. My spirit roams... Maybe Im the only one who feels that way."

Sheltered... that was what the wild animals spent their lives trying to find. How could someone who had it want to get away from it? Kraes had been one of those creatures, not helped by the friends he did not have. "It's beautiful..." He murmured, then shook his long ebony mane.

"I guess I can take it from here. I still feel guilty keeping you..."

Elindomiel laughed again. "Really Kraes, do not feel guilty. I do not mind at all. I still half to get my stuff anyway, and we will be going by my house near the end, so it is quite convenient."

She smiled warmly at the unicorn. "Shall we continue?"

Speechless, Kraes nodded, then flicked his tail at a particularly beautiful statue. Finally, however, the unicorn felt his amazement wearing off, and his working mind returned. Everything was a bit more clear, less mind-boggling.

Breathing in the warm, scented air, he sped up so he was walking on Elindomiel's right side. Here he was able to watch her, to guess what she was thinking, and besides, he would be able to see everything better.

Tindomiel was walking lazily through the forests of Rivendell, seeing how this part of the woods had changed in the past few weeks. Not much, she thought. It had only been about a month since she had last been in this part of the forest anyway. She was getting near the city now and slowed down; she didn't know if she wanted to go in today- she didn't really like its noise. But she heard footsteps and immediatly became curious: they didn't sound like the footsteps of an Elf or human. She walked towards the source of the noise and gasped in surprise: there was a black horse with a horn coming out of its head walking with an Elf she recognized; Elindomiel was her name, she thought. She racked her brains for the name of the creature and then it hit her: she'd once heard of a kind of horse called a unicorn, and this must be one. The unicorn was walking right by Elindomiel, and Tindomiel decided to be friendly. "Hello, Elindomiel" she said, stepping away from the trees into plain sight. She smiled, saying directly to the unicorn, "I have never seen one of your kind before. What are you doing here in Imladris?" She refused to call the vale by anything but its Elven name, the name she had first heard of it as.

Testing

Testing

Finally!

Kraes stopped, mouth open and eyes staring. The new elf had just sorta... walked up. The unicorn found it was about ten seconds before he could reply. These elves were just too... quiet. He would never be able to sneak up on them! No fun at all!

"Oh! Well... umm... there really aren't many of us around. most of my kind are... shy." He stopped, looked the newcomer up and down, eyeing her. She looked nice. "I'm Kraes. Who are you?"

It was a few seconds- no, more than a few- before anyone spoke. But when the unicorn introduced himself, Tindomiel did a half curtsey and introduced herself: "My name is Tindomiel. It is a pleasure to meet you, Kraes." She took in a deep breath; it seemed to her that the air smelled the same as the day she had arrived in Rivendell- was it really over four thousand years ago? "It is certainly a beautiful day," she said, knowing it was a stupid thing to say, but the memories of her past often made her say dumb stuff. It's not as if I'm dwelling in the past, she thought, I'm just thinking about it. She didn't want to dwell in the past: Taurion had asked her not to, and she didn't plan on doing it.

"Uh, yes. Best one in a while, I guess." Kraes swore that the room was closing in around him... the elves were against him...

He shook his head. It probably looked like a very random thing to do, but it cleared his thoughts, as it always did. The room was not closing in around him, and there were only two elves with him. He was fine. 'You've spent too much time outside.'

"The way over here was awful - rain and mud everywhere. I'm glad it's finally enjoyable." Another stupid comment to add to a awkward conversation. He cleared his throat, trying to cover up his lack of comfort.

((OOC(yeah, it's still me.... another new account....)))

"But the rain is good for the plants," Tindomiel said. This conversation was not going very well, so she thought. Very stiff, very impersonal. Probably a result of her semi-reclusive lifestyle. She really needed to get used to the noise of a normal lifestyle. Elindomiel seemed a little quiet, though. Should she try to get her into the conversation? But how? There really was no good way to do it. They would just have to keep on in the awkward silence and forced conversation. For a while, anyway.

Tindomiel's eyes landed on a pool farther up ahead. Oh no. Oh- no. It was that pool: that one that always brought back so many memories. They were bittersweet, and she wouldn't lose them for anything, but they usually made her cry. This was just perfect- she would cry in front of people she barely knew. And then she would be embarrassed. Oh no. Her eyes were tearing up already; the necklace, the kiss, the farewell- all were flashing through her eyes. Subconsiously Tindomiel reached up to grasp the amber and garnet necklace around her neck. It was comforting...

Kraes nodded absently, trying to think of an adequate response. He could get off the subject of the weather, such an awful subject. Maybe he could ask about what she was doing? Where she had come from?

"So wh-"

The unicorn stopped. Tindomiel was staring blankly forward, at a small pool. She had tensed up and her eyes had a scary faraway look, only getting farther away. She was slowly grasping her necklace. Obviously remembering something. Kraes hurriedly nudged her in the elbow, recalling times when he himself had been lost in the past. It was not a good feeling.

"What's wrong?"

Tindomiel was startled out of her reverie by Kraes' question and his nudges. Hastily she let go of the necklace and her hand dropped to her side. "Oh, nothing," she said, a little too quickly. "I'm just- remembering something from a long time ago..." she stammered. She tore her gaze from the pool and added, laughing a bit at herself, "Four thousand years and more and I still can't look at that pool and see it for what it really is: a hole in the ground filled with water."

Tindomiel watched the unicorn drinking from the pool, and it almost bothered her a bit- a place with such sentimental value shouldn't be used for common purposes. But she knew this was absurd and so forgot that feeling. In answer to Kraes' question, she simply said, "No, I don't really want to talk about it, but I will say enough to satisfy curiosity. That pool was where I found my lover again after one thousand years of thinking he was dead. Is that enough, or would you like to hear more?" There was a certain venom in her voice as she spoke- she felt annoyed at Kraes for asking a personal question like that, and she was even more annoyed with herself for answering it. Her eyes became hard and lost their faraway look. She glared at the unicorn, alomst daring him to ask more.

Kraes shrugged, water dripping from his nose. "No, I guess that's enough. Sorry for asking." The unicorn really had expected that sort of answer and would have been surprised if she had replied nicely. Of course, she had reason to be venemous - it would have to be tough.

Seeing the look that Tindomiel flashed at Kraes, he looked up from the water. 'I guess she's more touchy than you thought...'

"I apologize," he said, a little more sincere. "I didn't mean to make you mad." He also backed away from the pond, recognizing her pain at him using it as a water trough.

Tindomiel hadn't really been angry at Kraes, but she knew that was how she had come across. And she hadn't meant to. She just wasn't used to talked to random strangers about Taurion... not that she was used to talking about him to anyone. Everyone who had known him had known about their relationship, and those people also knew enough to leave Tindomiel alone about it. But she had no right to be angry.

"No, it's I who should be sorry," she said guiltily. "I shouldn't have been so upset by it... it's been 3,000 years since the end and I should be over it by now." She paused; "I really wasn't angry, it's just hard to talk about him..." Her face had relaxed and her eyes were no longer hard. She was blushing a little, though. It was slightly embarrassing to get so worked up and angry about something so old. But she couldn't forget.

Kraes gave another indifferent shrug and said, "No harm done." It hadn't mattered to him much, anyhow. That was one of the benefits of being a unicorn - even if he wasn't much of one - he wasn't prone to regret as much. There were things that he regretted; his herd, for one. He shook off memories quickly, then continued.

"I know how that can be. Trust me." The unicorn started walking back to Tindomiel, then remembered - he was a trickster. He had no business being here. Why would the elves want him here, anyways? He found himself edging away, towards the bridge and the gates.

Tindomiel nodded in reply to what Kraes had said: she assumed he had something about his past that was troublesome as well. She supposed everyone did. But then she noticed him walking towards the bridge.

"Where are you going?" she asked, concerned. Did he think he was unwanted? Guilt filled her; this is all your fault, she told herself. You made him think you were angry at him, and now he's leaving.

...he was nothing. A beast. That happened to be able to talk. But that made no difference. No one around here would want him. No one. Especially when he got an urge to hurt someone. He was lucky enough to have gotten this far without pushing someone down a hill or something. 'Get out while you can, beast.' That's when Kraes heard Tindomiel.

"Where are you going?"

The unicorn stopped, glanced back at the elf, blinked once, then murmured, "You don't know what I am." He hadn't really answered her question, but it didn't matter. Then he wondered. Tindomiel was standing dangerously close to that little pond - he could rush there quick enough, knock her down, then bolt. No one would follow him. The elf would just think he was not worth going after. He could be left alone again.

"No." He whispered to himself. It was one of those urges. He could feel it. Fighting it, Kraes winced inwardly, then made himself turn around and keep walking. This mad need to hurt things - he wasn't sure what it was. But it was big. And growing larger. He forcefully stuffed it down, and it passed. Momentarily.

Suddenly, it blossomed and reared it's ugly head. Plastering his ears back, and tossing his mane angrily, the unicorn (through no fault of his own) did an abrupt about-face. Sub-consciously, Kraes remarked to himself that it was kind of like a worm as he charged at Tindomiel.