September 18, 2010

• Another Story

  Why didn’t someone tell me that grad school is so busy? Thank you all for your patience; I’m afraid I don’t have a lot of time to actually write up a blog. Fortunately, however, some of you seemed to like that story I posted a few weeks ago, so for the time being I will post another story I wrote, one section at a time. I hope you enjoy it as well! It is the story of the courtship of a man named Erov (air-ove) and an Elven woman named Annaléa (ah-nah-lay-ah). God bless all of you!

   

  

  Chapter One: Erov Seeks the Hand of Annaléa

   

  One night while Erov was walking in the woods he came upon a clearing. Within the embrace of the darkened trees was a multitude of white flowers all swaying in a light wind, shining brightly in the moonlight. It was his birth moon, full and brilliant (for Erov was born under the light of such a moon, hence his pale skin, bright eyes and courage in the darkness whereas his siblings would cower near the fire), and it was on this night he received his greatest gift—for amongst the moonlilies lay Annaléa, an Elvish princess of the forest.

  Quietly Erov approached, his greatest fear being that of waking her, for she was so very beautiful while sleeping that the very night was like to shatter into day were her rest interrupted. Elves however hear much better than men and though his feet made no noise, his pounding heart may as well have been a thunderstorm. Slowly she opened her eyes and saw Erov standing over her.

  Erov’s gaze met her own and in that moment found his feet to be fixed in place, for so deep was her beauty that he could not escape it, nor did he wish to. She was wearing a dark blue dress and her feet were bare, the bottoms stained from the rich soil of the forest and the bruised grasses that yielded joyfully to her every step. Her skin was lightly tanned, kissed so by the sun, and her hair was light brown and streaked with honey-blond strands, here and there being small braids twined with blue ribbons to match her raiment. Though above all it was the eyes of Annaléa which enchanted him the most, for never before had he seen such large and beautiful jewels of sea-green, and the way they looked at him in the moonlight made Erov wish dearly that he could look upon them for the rest of his days.

  “Why are you here, son of man?” the elf asked in her soft, sweet voice, still lying upon the grass.

  “I cannot help myself, for my lonely heart was drawn to your beauty as a thirsting deer to the spring! Oh if I had but one wish it would be to know of the name Beauty goes by!”

  She was touched by his words and rose to her feet, brushing away a few blades of grass that clung to her dress, unwilling to let go of her.

  “My name is Annaléa, daughter of the Forest King, steward of all these trees among which you and your family dwell.”

  “Annaléa!” Erov cried, “Surely that name is the child of Heaven’s very breath! Annaléa; the trees whisper it! Annaléa; the creatures dance to it! Oh that the stones could speak such a dear word! Annaléa!”

  For a whole moon they met there amid the white flowers, Erov always bringing her carved things and poetry, and soon he had the courage within him and the blessing of his father and mother to seek the King of the Forest and ask for the hand of fairest Annaléa. It was that Erov followed a path of white petals, left by his dearest love, all the way to the King’s secret court. When the son of man arrived at the great grove of the king’s hall he came upon a merry scene, but soon mirth gave way to silence and stares. Here a musician ceased and there a courtier held their tongue, for all were amazed that a man stood in a place none other than Elves dared to seek.

  “Who is this man that stands uninvited here within my great hall?” the king demanded, rising to his feet. The silence became even more quiet and it seemed as though the cottonwood fluff drifting down like snow had come to a standstill in midair.

  “It is indeed a great hall, mighty king, and its majesty humbles this man to his very core. My name is Erov, son of man, and I come to ask for your fair daughter’s hand in marriage.”

  The king laughed at him, “I have many daughters, all of them fair, Erov son of man. You may as well have asked for a star from the night sky!”

  The whole assembled court chuckled at the king’s saying, but Erov boldly rose above their laughter with a great exclamation.

  “But I ask for the sun!” he cried out. All gasped and were hushed, even the king, and his eyes grew wide, growing pregnant with the knowledge of which daughter it was that the son of man sought.

  “Annaléa? You seek my daughter Annaléa?” the king almost whispered. He strode up to Erov, causing the heart of the young man to shrink though he tried to stand as tall as he could. Try as he might, the king towered over him, looking down into his eyes as if from the top of a mountain. Erov yet found the courage to speak.

  “Oh Majesty, yes! I would seek her amidst all the desert sands even if she were only so large as a single grain!”

  The king’s eye closed to a squint, suspicion burrowing deep into Erov’s every word in search of guile and, finding none, he returned to his great throne. All the court sat in their place, be it upon the ground or on long plank benches, leaving Erov to stand alone.

  “Annaléa my daughter, do you wish for the heart of this man?”

  She nodded her head eagerly, coming to recline at the king’s feet, placing her hands within his own.

  “Very well, son of man. You must perform three tasks to prove yourself worthy of so great a gift. Fail at any one of them and you will never see her again. I will spirit her away to such a place that you would not find her if you looked everywhere upon the earth three times in the same moment. Do you accept this?”

  Erov beat his chest and said proudly, “I cannot fail, for love is my guide! I accept your tasks, whatever they may be.”

  The king looked at him thoughtfully saying, “We will see, bold one, for you know not what is to be requested of you.”

  He clapped his hands once, shattering the stillness, and the cottonwood fluffs continued to rain again. A scribe then came forward, being then instructed to write in the language of men everything the king spoke.

  “You must wrestle with a demon and win. You must drink from the Bitter Cup and gain strength. You must seek the greatest treasure in the world and lay it at my feet. Do these things and you may wed my daughter; do them not, and you will be eternally separated from her. Take with you this scroll, lest you forget the price of your courtship.”

  Erov took the scroll and was dismissed, immediately embarking upon his quest. To find a demon, he thought, he must find a cave (for demons shun the light and dwell in the bowels of the earth). He knew that the nearest cave was a day’s journey away, so he chose for himself a soft spot of earth and slept to calm and strengthen himself for the time ahead.

   

  • 10:38 pm
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