Open to both courts

[tawarwaith]

[Tauriel looks at the locket with more familiarity this time. This at least was something she was comfortable with and it made announcing her reappearance a little easier.]

To those of you who do not know me, I am Tauriel of the Woodland Realm, previously of Mirkwood. To those of you who do know me, I am glad to see you once more, though I cannot say it is with any great joy. I am not happy to once again know that I have been recruited against my will to fight against those I deem dear to me. But I am glad to see familiar faces and know I am not alone. Can anyone tell me how long I have been away and what has happened? The last I remember was being in the Station.

Comments

[tawarwaith]

That will make things far easier then for me when I travel.

[Not that she was particularly a fan of riding horses, but they were certainly useful in crossing long distances in a hurry.]

I do not think I will be asking anyone to come with me this time and hope that speed will help me to overcome any dangers that might present themselves. It is my hope to be there as soon as time allows. Do you think you could wait as long for me to arrive, or are you bound to head elsewhere soon?

[digophelia]

[ Alice pauses. She feels a little guilty for planning to leave with others to the Redgate when she returns. She's angry with the seelie forces for what happened, despite her reservations for the courts. And Alice also hates liars. ]

I will be joining others like Miss Grell and Sir Lancelot in a trek, but my plans are to return to the station once it's over. I won't be leaving for a few days, however, if you wanted company.

[tawarwaith]

I do not think I can make it to the Station in time. Not when I am uncertain of how quickly I can leave Caer Scrima, though this information certainly lends an urgency to my purpose.

[She is sad and also worried for Alice, but she has no reason to deny her the quest she wishes to undertake. Besides, she knows full well the girl is more than capable of defending herself.]

I will look forwards then to your return. Hopefully I will be well situated at the station then.

[digophelia]

Oh.

[ Alice looks genuinely sad to hear this. It is a disappointment she'll miss Tauriel by the time she leaves. She has no plans to stay in the unseelie territory, but still. hee can't hold off any longer, not with Grell so keen on departing soon. ]

I will come back! I like it here, they have the nicest beds I've seen in years.

[tawarwaith]

I'm sorry to disappoint you but I promise I'll make it up to you as soon as I can.

[She smiles in he hopes it will cheer Alice up.]

I will take your word for it and then test them out for myself once I am there. I'm certain you are correct.

[digophelia]

Oh, no, it's not your fault. It's not as if you had a say in returning here. And you must! Even I haven't been fortunate to sleep on an actual bed.

[ Yeah, like anything she's slept on has been an actual, good bed in the last ten years. ]

[tawarwaith]

[Unfortunately Elves don't sleep, so she doubts she will see the true wonderment of a good bed. She will just keep taking Alice's word that these beds are good.]

Even as dangerous as this place is, I hope this Draubworld is treating you well. Certainly better than places you have been before.

[She may not know about Alice's tragic past or about Wonderland, but she can well imagine that wherever Alice has been, it must not have been a good place if one her age had to learn to kill.]

[digophelia]

[ Ah, that has Alice stone-faced. She wouldn't have been so gracious and open with Tauriel if it weren't for their exchange before leaving with Feanor. Well, what can she say? She's never had this much freedom in her life.

How sad is that? She's had nightmares of not only her life before Draubwurld, but also what she had done in battle. Alice shrugs it off, it's all she can do. ]

Well, I must admit. Even in this world, there's certainly no constraints as there would be in London.

[tawarwaith]

Oh it seems she must have said something to upset Alice. She instantly looks apologetic.

Forgive me if my words were ill chosen. I did not mean to cause you discomfort...

[She sighs unsure of how to smooth over this upset.]

I just... worry for you, even if you do not need anyone to worry. I know you are a skilled fighter....

[She feels her words are making things worse, so just just stops talking.]

[digophelia]

No, it's nothing you've done, Miss Tauriel.

[ She can bounce back from this, she always has. ]

It's what happened that upsets me.

[tawarwaith]

Still it was my words which brought you unpleasantness. I have no doubt that you are strong enough to overcome anything. If ever you are in need of someone to talk with, I will listen and not judge.

[digophelia]

[ She shakes her head, allowing her hair to side. ]

No, it's fine. I promise. Terrible things have happened the last few days, things that shouldn't have happened to even the most questionable people.

[tawarwaith]

I heard I missed much in my absence. [The entire time she had been here before, she had wished she was home. So much it seemed that fate itself conspired to send her there. And now, she found that she would have given anything to have been here instead.]

I can only hope that I am allowed to remain here should something terrible happen again.

[digophelia]

Well, I am not sure. Perhaps-

They tried to reclaim the silmaril -- Celegorm offered his life in return for it.

[tawarwaith]

[There is a sad, soft sigh from her as she glanced away. If Celegorm had indeed paid the price, then it was yet another life lost, all for a pretty bauble.]

And was it returned?

[digophelia]

I assume that it was; I have not heard word of it since and his brother is distraught.

[ They can say what the like, seeing his brother in such despair even upset Alice. ]

[tawarwaith]

With luck it will be destroyed. The wounds inflicted will take time to heal for all involved. It is just my hope that this tragedy will not occur again.

[digophelia]

I trust that it will be, especially the way Mr. Maglor spoke so despairingly about it.

[tawarwaith]

[This talk of all these sad things feels so dark and gloomy to Tauriel, making her heart begs then for happier news of any sort.]

Not everything here can have been depression and gloom while I was gone. Was there not a happy occurrence in my absence?

[digophelia]

Well.

[ Oh, no, Alice feels terrible for the gloomy discussion. She glances over her shoulder. "Sophie!" Is what Alice calls and something small and white can be seen hopping up and into Alice's hands.

A little white rabbit in Alice's possession, far smarter than a normal rabbit. ]

[tawarwaith]

[Tauriel can't help i. Her first, natural instinct is to think that the rabbit is some sort of creature to be eaten for a meal, even though it is rather on the small side. It is only after watching Alice interact with the animal that she realizes it is some sort of pet.]

OH! It is a companion of yours? Wherever did you find such a small creature?

[digophelia]

She was my boon for cutting down the imps that attacked us on the way to the station. I woke up to her licking my face. She's smarter than a normal rabbit, so I named her Sophie, from "sophia". It means "wisdom".

[tawarwaith]

She is a sweet thing then with a pretty name. [Tauriel is very glad she did not comment about cooking the rabbit now.]

I'm glad you were rewarded for your efforts. I hope she brings some happiness to you.

[digophelia]

On the contrary, I hope that I can bring happiness to her.

[tawarwaith]

Well I know you can keep her safe.