namaarie <farewell>
By Juliette
The weather was always quickly changing in Middle-Earth, once a season passed, a new one immediantly began. The sun was beginning to fade for the last time in the Spring air, as a new season approached to show only the next day. Most children of a smallen Elven village, were dancing and leting out soft yelps of excitment as they waited for the new weather to come, all except eight particularly unlucky children.
“I don’t see what’s so good about the day ending,” a small girl piped up. Under her black hair, her blue eyes shined as she looked up at her mother, who was trying to cut off bits and pieces of the black mass of hair, which a type of juice was thrown into. The girl pouted her lips out for a few seconds before looking around the small house, not thinking twice about her brother who sat in a chair across from her, covering his mouth to hide his laughter.
“Summer begins,” her mother responded, cutting off a rather large chunk of hair, which caused the girl’s eyes to widen in alarm. She thought that surely by the end of the hair cutting, she would be bald, or worse, look like her older brother and be mistaken for him. They were rather much alike. The girl watched her mother toss the hair on the table and then her brother pick it up, putting it on his upper lip to wear as a mustache. Though the sticky hair had gotten stuck and he pulled at it with great force.
“Serves you right,” the girl spoke, giving her brother a look which said everything she was thinking. You see, the girl was the only one in her family, besides her mother and had been the only girl to be born to her father’s side of the family for generations. Sometimes she was proud of it, but as she was having her hair cut short because of the juice, she was sour towards having to have long hair in the first place.
“Juliette, don’t talk that way to your brother,” her mother demanded. Juliette was this little girl, her blue eyes brighter than any other girls in the village. She stuck her tongue out a bit and scrunched up her nose, a look that she would carry on for many years to come. Lycael, her brother, was staring at Juliette and making faces to tease her. Sitting there, being taunted, the young elven girl closed her eyes, not wanting to see any more of her teasing brother. Who continued on to make faces until he realized that nothing was peering out from under the black hair. After many minutes, Juliette was finally let free and to join the fesitvals again, but not without a look in the mirror and a gastly hate for the new length of her hair. Behind her, her mother stood and placed her hands on her shoulders, staring at her own reflection in the mirrors. Age had not grown onto her, as she had chosen to stay at that age, but this was something she was beginning to hate. For you see, Melda did not like being an elf, oh no, she greatly dissapproved of her ability to live until the Earth’s end.
”I don’t like it,” the little girl stated, staring at her reflection in the mirror before changing her gaze to her mother’s blonde hair, loose around her shoulders. Turning around, Juliette stared up at her mother, eyes a soft green, something quite different from the piercing blue eyes Juliette had inhereted from her father. “You will grow into it,” she stated, kissing her daughters cheek before bringing her back to the festive. Though many things tore her attention away from her dancing children, as later in the date, she would disappear from their lives. ___
Hours had passed of festive dancing. Lycael and Juliette were quick to join back in with the other children and bug their brothers for rides on their backs. Long into the night, both of the children played. While their mother sat to the side, hidden by the shadows casted by the moon behind tree’s. Melda simply watched for a few minutes before turning away from her children and looking into the deep forest, which taunted her with adventures she could have, if only she would leave her children and her life behind. The idea caused nightmares and thunderstorms in her mind as she stared, not wanting to leave everything she had built- behind with a husband who found little time to be with his children. Every idea, every thought and every adventure she could have, swung around her mind until she had finally stood up.
Melda was going to leave, whether or not her husband was responsible enough for children. He would need to learn, for she could not be held down any longer. From the day she had entered the village, everybody had known that she would not last long among those of their grown and humble society. As a wood elf- part of a constantly traveling bunch- she would not last long in one spot.
Running into her room, she gathered everything she would need to leave, and packed up a bag of dresses and clothing she would carry with her for days. For months if she needed to. Food was shoved into small bags while water would be supplied by the river. She would walk along it, to ensure that she would find water wherever she would be. She would travel by it, until it came too be a village. Then she would give everything up. For a love that was not true, and raise another family.
When she came out of the small room, she stopped dead in her tracks, the father of her children standing and watching with a curious gaze. He raised his eyebrows only slightly, simply because he knew the day would come.
“Wait until morning,” he requested. With many pleeds and speaking about his children, he had finally convinced her. She would wait until morning to say goodbye to their children- she would give them a final night of happiness- then she would turn their backs on them. A lie was thought of, as she had not wanted their children to know of their traveling past. Terrified they would try to follow her because they were capable to do so. _____ “Juliette,” her mother hummed, stroking the black and short hair away from the girls eyes. Which refused to open in the still nightly cast. After a few minutes of soft humming, she opened her eyes to the site of her blonde haired mother above her, smiling only slightly as she took her daughters hand and brought her out of bed. When she had looked around, all of her brothers had been cleared from their beds and to the yard.
Lead outside, Juliette shivered, eyes still glazed from sleep as she waited for an explination. Beside her father, a horse stood, packed with bags and nessesities for living. With wide eyes, Juliette stared, wondering if her father was to go on yet another small adventure to find more elves and bring a population to rest. There were few stories told by her father but when they were, they were always the best. Lycael, however, knew that something was different, simply by how his father looked. He took Juliettes hand the moment that she stood by him.
“Melda,” the man hummed, putting his hand out for his wife, as it would be the final time to have touched her, and to love her anymore. For after this, he was forced to let her go. She did not take his hand, but gave him a smile as she looked among her eight children, giving each a small look before she whispered softly.
“I am going to leave.”
Silence rang through the air, as if the words had struck a dagger through each childs vocal chords. Juliette squeezed her brothers hand, not knowing how to react to the five simple words her mother had spoken with such ease;it almost made her sick. Lycael had looked towards his younger sister, hair matted to one side and parted on the opposite side of the large mat. He knew that it would hurt his sister more than anybody else, so he moved forward and to his mother to beg, “please, don’t leave.”
“I must,” Melda spoke again, looking to her youngest son and giving him a smile. Lycael’s eyes hardened as he stared at his mother. The green eyes that belonged to his mother, would haunt him in the rest of his brothers- for they had recieved the same eyes. What had gone wrong with him and Juliette, he would never know.
“You can’t!”
“Lycael,” his father warned.
“She can’t leave, dad!” he yelled, his eyes were quickly tearing as he turned his gaze to his father, tears threatening to escape. Juliette was looking at the ground, the words that were spoken next, were those in which hurt, “Juliette needs you, mom!”
The blue eyes of the girl darted up to find her brother, looking to her, his eyes filled with tears. Juliette let out a soft sob, as he had never stuck up for her, not once as they were only six. Juliette then looked to her mother, who still remained sickly calm as she stared at her son, telling his mother that his sister needed him.
“You need each other,” Melda said, bringing her son into a hug. Lycael let out soft sobs and hugged his mother, not wanting to let her leave them. He would do anything to keep her with them, to have even a single night of knowing she was going to go. Anything.
Juliette stood aside, staring as her brother finally let go and backed up. Her mother held out her arms to Juliette, who at the age of six, was being rather strong about the situation. Until she had finally ran up to her mother and hugged her, sobbing uncontrollobly into her shoulder, “don’t leave me mommy, don’t leave me. I need you.”
A soft hand found it’s way to Juliettes hair, stroking it for a final time before her mother pulled away from the hug to look at her daughter. Lycael looked to his sister, who’s eyes had gone a dark blue and lost all shine and hope in the world.
As Juliette was left to stand there, watching as her mother got onto her horse and bid the rest of her children farewell, she couldn’t help but let the tears stream down her face, the soft word of, “mommy,” repeated and croaked. Without any further thoughts, Lycael wrapped his arms around his little sister and spoke into her hair, trying to comfort her, “it’s alright, Juliette, it’s alright.”
“No it’s not,” Juliette said, burrying her face into her brothers neck and trying to stop the tears from flowing. Lycael began to vow, softly enough for only the girl to hear, that he would protect her no matter the case, and he would keep protecting her until she finally became the protector of her own children.
On that day, everything changed.
