Naridalis’ Diary
Trestlebridge Inn, by the Wildwood, Third Age.
The raven returned today. I heard its wings before I saw it, cutting through the dawn like a blade. It should not have made the journey so swiftly. My father must have willed it, whispered to the wind as only he can. The seal was his - silver wax, the leaf sigil of Caras Galadhon pressed deep. I broke it with trembling hands.
His letter was as I feared.
/“You have wandered far, Naridalis. Farther, perhaps, than sense permits. It is one thing to walk beneath strange stars, and another to bind yourself to errant causes. You joined this Company of Men—what have they offered you, save the burden of their mortal failings?”/
He speaks of my life in the west like it is some trivial pursuit. A child’s fancy. He names my choices folly, my loyalty misplaced. He does not ask about any of those I call my friends, though I know he remembers their names from older letters. They are strangers to him, and he wishes them to remain so.
/“You have worn the name of Lothlórien like a cloak left on the roadside. If you would have it back, know the cost. We will send the oak, as requested; sufficient for your little hall. But in return, you will return. Your exile ends. Your wandering ends.”/
I ought to be glad.
And I am. Truly. The Company will have what it needs. Fine timber, by the standards of Men. Straight, true, seasoned with care. Not mallorn, of course... he made certain to say that, as if I would ever be so brazen.
But as I read his words again, I feel a slow breaking inside me. Perhaps I was wrong. To think I could remain forever apart, untouched by the call of my people. To think I could dance between worlds and belong to both.
I have bartered my freedom for the sake of my friends. And I would do it again. But I wonder now... was this always the end of the path I chose? That no matter what roads I walked, they would always lead back to him. To duty. To a golden cage, however lovely its leaves may be.
The forest sings outside, but I do not feel its song this morn.
—N.
Continues with “What Remains Unspoken (Kin RP - Entry 08)”
