Sidebar by Brook (never look back.) of RCR, RGU, & Blank Pages
Site Graphics: lee @ RCR Coding Help: RCR site trailer by STEPHA
Forum Markers: iconshock
_______________________________________________________________________________ T E L L M E O N E, T H I N G N O W I’ve got years of experience there _______________________________________________________________________________ Gliding into the palace corridor, Ash never knew what to do here. His place was outside, in nature, not in a palace fit for kings and queens. The tree god loved to be surrounded by trees like him. The sounds of a cool breeze rustling through leaves, a soft river flowing by, the feel of grass on his feet, that was what Ash understood. When he came here, to Cair Paravel, it was like a completely different world. He was polite and cautious but the man could only go so far. He was all tree you might say. Sometimes the tree god couldn’t understand the protocol needed for humans.
However Ash also knew his place all the same. He needed to speak with the kings and queens about the knowledge he had concerning the western wild and of course there was the news of the new arrivals. He had met a few of them already, but wished to hear about them from his rulers. All of the rulers however were occupied at the moment which meant Ash needed to occupy his time until they were ready. The beautiful tapestries and decorated halls were wonderful however Ash had seen them all before. Standing around here seemed…awkward for the tree god. He needed a cool breeze or at the very least the sky.
Silently walking through the palace corridors, Ash kept his head down as he made his way to one particular area of the palace he knew he could tolerate. If he had to wait for the kings and queens…it would be here. Dressed in his plain peasant outfit, the man easily found his way out into Pevensie Cove. As his feet sank into the sand, Ash took a deep breath of fresh air before slowly fluttering his eyes shut. Yes, he could stay here for as long as he needed to until he was called upon. _______________________________________________________________________________
Since she had been shown Pevensie Cove, the beach had become the main area for her to relax. With soft white sand everywhere it was perfect to practice her floor routine without worrying about falling on hard ground and breaking yet another bone. The air filled with the smell of salt-water was something new and pleasing to her nose. Elysia removed her sandals and dug her feet into the sand until they were covered in it. “That feels amazing.” Clipping her hair up out of the way she walked down to the water’s edge to feel the cool sand and water. The surf was steadily crashing on the beach, not a hard crash, but a slow moving wave.
Listing to the water move about she began her stretches, a broken bone might be less possible on sand, but a pulled muscle was always a possibility. Once during a floor routine practice early in her gymnastic training she had not done the warm up’s properly and had pulled a muscle in her leg; the pain lasted a week. Lesson Learned. With her warm up’s done she took off down the beach front and began her handsprings. When she came to ten flips Elysia stopped and turned around then did ten in the other direction. She continued this repeating process with various moves up and down the beach until her practice came to half an hour.
Flipping one last time she landed her feet in the sand and walked back to her sandals and bag, hoping to get a drink. Falling down onto the slightly wet sand she found the water bottle one of the other students and transfigured for her use and drank. Still taking sips every now and then she looked out at the cove and listened to the waves. Out of the corner of her eye she could see someone entering the cove. The Gryffindor did not bother to look to see how it was; she was enjoying herself just sitting where she was with the water reaching her feet every now and then. The tide moved further and further up the sand.
:: tag: Ash :: words: 354 :: :: lyrics:In the Middle of the Night by Within Temptation:: :: outfit: Short Sleeve white blouse, light brown breeches 3/4 length, brown sandals.:: :: note: none
The smell of fresh sea salt water hit his nostrils like a breath of fresh air. Taking it all in, calmly and deeply, Ash smiled. Digging his toes and heels into the soft sandy beach, Ash knew he could finally relax once more. After everything he had gone through just to make it here, he finally felt some kind of peace. There was no danger here. It seemed like only yesterday that he had been living and working in Lantern waste. Gathering information for the new kings and queens of Narnia, Ash had found a home in that far off forest. So when he decided to finally return to Cair Paravel, to report his facts and findings, the last thing he had expected to find was war and magic.
A run in with a boy, Corren Cromwell, seemed so ordinary at first but when Ash was finished everything in his life seemed to be upside down again. When he had woken up that day everything was peaceful and normal and by that night he had heard of new wizards, a new threat, and some kind of hostilities between the royals and some of the new wizards. Two days had passed until he had finally reached the castle and confirmed the worst, there was a war but thankfully the kings and queens were all still fine and ready to fight.
Sighing out loud now, Ash knew he was safe here or at least hoped he was. Call the aging tree god a hopeful soul but there was something about being in the presence of the prophetic humans that made Ash believe. Certain of this, Ash reopened his eyes and looked around the beach, expecting a long and open shore for him to walk along and meditate on. But he couldn’t. Stumbling to the side a little as he tried to stop and walk all at the same time, Ash finally spotted the girl on the beach. Who was she? She was close to the tide coming in too. Breathing a little uneasy again, Ash began to walk towards her. “He…hello there?” Ash hesitated before speaking out, clearing his throat out first to make his voice honest and less quiet.
Elysia sipped her water as she watched the waves. She would start another round of practice in a little bit, most likely just basic running up and down the beach front. The figure she had spotted out of the corner of her eye seemed to be heading for her. When the clearing of a throat sounded she stayed where she was at. “He…hello there?” Looking up at the person she saw a man, clearly Narnian. He looked about five to ten years older than herself, but for all she could know it was merely a façade to someone far older or younger, after all most of the human looking ‘people’ were in fact not human. There were tree and water spirits, Dryads… she thought they were called… there were so many different beings within Narnia it was astounding.
She smiled politely before looking back out at the water; she was enjoying herself too much to argue with someone today by snapping first and apologizing later. “It’s beautiful isn’t it?” The view was one of the reasons she was outside on the beach. The Hope Family never had the chance to visit the beach much back home; it was always ‘run to this practice’ or ‘off to this academic conference’. Elysia had made it a silent promise to herself that as long as she was in this world she would take the chances that were not offered at home. A wave of water slowly made its way up to her feet, as it drew back into the ocean a large seashell remained behind. Picking it up she turned it over in her hands. “A conch shell, don’t see those often.” Rubbing her fingers over the shells edges she looked back to the ocean. “It’s nice out here, with only the crashing waves as noise. Don't you think?”
:: tag: Ash :: words: 306 :: :: lyrics:In the Middle of the Night by Within Temptation:: :: outfit: Short Sleeve white blouse, light brown breeches 3/4 length, brown sandals.:: :: note: none
Ash was a nervous creature by nature but when you add another person, he was almost always speechless. He was a tree god, used to speaking to his fellow trees not creatures much less humans. A man of few words, now that he needs to speak to others – he could only imagine – Ash knew he would have to make some adjustments to himself. So when he tried to introduce himself, the answer wasn’t at all what he expected. “It’s beautiful isn’t it?” The comment struck Ash as rather odd. Hello…it’s beautiful? Ash’s eyebrow arched up a little and with a little step back remained speechless for a little while. What was he supposed to do now? Thinking up an answer and fumbling with his hands, Ash looked down to the girl sitting in the sand and back to the water a few times.
The look on his face had to be a look of complete puzzlement. What was he supposed to say to that? Yes, of course or was that some kind of a trick? To top it all off, a small nervous shiver ran down Ash’s back as a small wave touched her feet then moved back into the ocean. Ash – a tree at heart – was petrified of the ocean. Walking on the beach was one thing but actually touching the water was a completely different thing. Watching the water move further and further away, Ash wasn’t paying attention to Elysia until the movement of the conch shell caught Ash’s eyes. Looking back over to the girl, Ash took a quick look over to the shell and with a shrug said nothing again. What was he supposed to say yet again? Ash didn’t know much about shells or the water. He knew a few water nymphs but they didn’t talk about shells much. Bark was of course a different story.
“It’s nice out here, with only the crashing waves as noise. Don’t you think?” Eyes bugging out a bit, now Ash knew he had to speak up a little. Clearing his throat once more, the man shuffled in his place. Without really thinking about it, Ash began to speak. “It’s alright. Well it is nice, course, everywhere in Narnia is nice I’ve found. But…I prefer the forests.” Ash answered, fumbling with his hands once again. “If you don’t mind me asking…who…who are you exactly?” Ash asked, his curiously about the girl too much to handle. The longer he looked at her the less he believed she was a water nymph but…he just couldn’t tell.
“It’s alright. Well it is nice, course, everywhere in Narnia is nice I’ve found. But…I prefer the forests.” Elysia laughed a bit at the remark, nodding her head. “Yes Narnia is a beautiful place,” the colors were vivid, like out of a movie. The air was thick with a strange magic and strange smells. Everything about Narnia was so different than Earth. Back home areas were constantly being destroyed to build new structures and technology was taking over. The forests were shrinking in size until they just vanished for good. The beaches had become polluted with people and business or worse… with waste and oil. “Everything is so vibrant and full of life.”
“If you don’t mind me asking…who…who are you exactly?” Looking up at the man she smiled a little. She was sure now he was not from Earth, but a Narnian. While most of the ‘locals’ had been inviting to the students because they were children who suffered from something of not their own creation, others had not been so welcoming. Some feared the students were nothing more than like the White Witch. After hearing about the Witch the first time Elysia had asked around and from everything she heard it was no wonder some people had been less than welcoming. They had reason to fear. Not necessarily from them, however He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named was loose within the country, and he was a person to fear. Just the thought of the man sent shivers down her spine. The Dark Wizard was no friend or ally of muggles or muggleborns…and she just so happened to fall into the latter category. Shaking her head to get rid of the thought she answered the question. “My name is Elysia; and you are?”
:: tag: Ash :: words: 288 :: :: lyrics:In the Middle of the Night by Within Temptation:: :: outfit: Short Sleeve white blouse, light brown breeches 3/4 length, brown sandals.:: :: note: none
_______________________________________________________________________________ T E L L M E O N E, T H I N G N O W I’ve got years of experience there _______________________________________________________________________________
Looking out at the water, a small little shiver ran down Ash’s spine again. Taking another step back, the man didn’t want to be near where the shore was where the water came up, unlike Elysia. Laughing a little at himself, he began to wonder if coming down here was a good idea. He wasn’t going to be alone, and there was the water issue. It was beautiful, there was no doubt there, but his actions as of late hadn’t been the best. Maybe there was something in the air? “Yes Narnia is a beautiful place, everything is so vibrant and full of life.” The comments made by the girl snapped Ash back into the present. Sheepishly smiling down at her Ash shuffled a little in his spot as he nodded and agreed once more.
When Ash asked who she was, he didn’t know exactly what to expect. Names, another random statement about the beauty of the view, or a confrontation like before with that boy; there were many choices that Ash knew could happen. But when the girl turned, looked up, and smiled, that small feeling of uneasiness settled a bit. “My name is Elysia; and you are?” With a lopsided smile, Ash ran his hands over his head as he shuffled a little in his spot. He had to introduce himself now, it was only polite. Bowing a little even though the girl was already sitting lower then he was, Ash still was formal in his greetings. “Pleased to meet you Elysia. My name is Ash Forrest.”
Elysia wanted to shake her head, the man was so formal. It was definitely a change from back home and the rudeness she often encountered. “Nice to meet you as well Ash.” Putting everything back into her bag including her boots and flung the strap over her shoulder. Something was causing Ash to be uneasy; it could have been her or the ocean or any number of things. With a surname of Forest and a first name of Ash it seemed like the man’s name made him fit perfect in the woods. Glancing up and down the beachfront she saw no one else about, so they were alone… Another thing she noticed was that the man seemed overly formal, like someone out of an early 20th century novel or something, or maybe she was just too used to lay back people. “Would you like to talk about down the beach? Or do you need to be somewhere?”
:: tag: Ash :: words: 159 :: :: lyrics:In the Middle of the Night by Within Temptation:: :: outfit: Short Sleeve white blouse, light brown breeches 3/4 length, brown sandals.:: :: note: sorry for so short
_______________________________________________________________________________ T E L L M E O N E, T H I N G N O W I’ve got years of experience there _______________________________________________________________________________ Another small little smile greeted Ash’s lips as Elysia spoke once more. “Nice to meet you as well Ash.” A part of the man wanted to chuckle outloud however he was able to keep that inside with no real expression of this desire showing. Why? Well because as of late Ash would have been fooled meeting him was anything but nice. Still, this girl was so far friendly, and he was never one to be cynical. Cautious perhaps but never cynical. When he noticed her eyes wandering down the beach, Ash couldn’t help but let his own eyes wander a little that way too. There was no one there, so either she was admiring the view or making sure there was no one there, or something else. Really the possibilities were endless but Ash tried not to think about it all.
So with his smile still in place, arms folded behind his back, the man took another small step back backwards. “Well I do need to be somewhere however…” Ash started to speak before glancing back across to the path he had just taken from the palace. There was no way anyone was ready for his already; he must have had some time left for a short conversation here. And trying to explain to this relatively strange girl that he was here on business about a number of Narnian things seemed, wrong so instead he kept his lips sealed about the why. “However I’m not needed for some time. Would you like to walk a little with me?” Ash asked the questions with another question – saying the same. Still, he wanted her to make the choice, not the other way around. _______________________________________________________________________________
“Would you like to walk a little with me?” Elysia was a little surprised by the question, it wasn’t something she was asked very often and certainly by guys as good looking as Ash. As good looking, what was her head thinking? To answer her own question with the same back at her, that was also not done very often. She could feel her cheeks heat up slightly as she blushed a light pink. “uh… that’d…be nice.” Elysia was a school girl, yes, but that did not mean she should be blushing like one.
Something was still off about this guy though. He was polite, yes, but he acted almost like some lord from her mother’s history class. Shaking her head of the thought she tried to think of something else then how good looking or well-mannered or… the thought came to a halt there. “Anywhere in particular you want to walk to? Or we just going to let our feet decide the destination?”
:: tag: Ash :: words: 164 :: :: lyrics:In the Middle of the Night by Within Temptation:: :: outfit: Short Sleeve white blouse, light brown breeches 3/4 length, brown sandals.:: :: note: sorry for so short...again...
_______________________________________________________________________________ T E L L M E O N E, T H I N G N O W I’ve got years of experience there _______________________________________________________________________________
It was a simple question, one that Ash thought would be easy enough to answer. It was just a little walk. A walk along an empty beach, Elysia could either agree or wish to stay here. Either way, Ash would carry on. A simple hello and goodbye would have been said and that would have been that. After all, the man knew not everyone was a fan of walking. You could either love it or hate it. It was a strange thought but a true one. So when she agreed, Ash’s lips flickered up to a soft smile. This was perfect. Stretching his arm out Ash waited for Elysia to be standing and ready to walk, slowly he was sure, along the beach.
“Anywhere in particular you want to walk to? Or we just going to let our feet decide the destination.” A small laugh began to bubble up through Ash’s throat. Shaking his head, Ash glanced down the long cove, trying to see where it led. This place was unfamiliar to him, he didn’t know this place well, and did it really matter? He didn’t have a proper destination and really he probably would be distracted by any conversation they had too. If, that is, they talked along the way. Ash would have happily walked – even with Elysia – in silence. Still, a good conversation would be nice. However Ash suddenly realized he had been rather mute for a little too long.
Shaking his head again, trying to clear his mind out, he turned his head over towards the beautiful girl. “Let’s let our feet decide.” Ash admitted, starting to walk although he moved a little further away from the waves of the shore. Smiling over from the shore and then to Elysia, Ash pulled his hands behind his back and sighed a little. “So…Elysia...I don’t seem to remember you before at Cair Paravel. Are you new or…from Archenland or…?” Ash asked.
“Let’s let our feet decide.” She like how Ash thought. Right now having no destination meant neither one of them was really bound to anything. So just in case either had to leave it would be less rude… “That sounds great.”
“So…Elysia...I don’t seem to remember you before at Cair Paravel. Are you new or…from Archenland or…?” Ash asked. Elysia shook her head in response. “I’ve only been here for a little while, maybe a week or two? I’m from England. Hartford to be specific...” She shrugged her shoulders a bit. Just thinking about home made her miss her bother and parents more. Her mother was most likely busy with the start of term and making sure her students did their work. By now her father would have hired help for the fall and winter seasons to work in the bakery. Cameron, her brother, would be in school… exactly where she should have been… in school doing homework and studying for classes, not running around a bright castle bumping into fauns, centaurs, nymphs and other magical beings. “I’m one of the Hogwarts students. You’re from here though, from Narnia?”
:: tag: Ash :: words: 189 :: :: lyrics:In the Middle of the Night by Within Temptation:: :: outfit: Short Sleeve white blouse, light brown breeches 3/4 length, brown sandals.:: :: note: again...
_______________________________________________________________________________ T E L L M E O N E, T H I N G N O W I’ve got years of experience there _______________________________________________________________________________
“That sounds great.” With a soft little smile, Ash was happy that Elysia agreed without a single complaint. He didn’t know many around Narnia that would have done otherwise actually, so many of his friends around Narnia did enjoy a good walk, but there was that grumpy creature or being every once in a while that surprised Ash all the same. Still, nothing in the way Elysia looked or sounded made Ash think she was like that.
Starting to walk, and trying to find some kind of conversation starter, Ash asked his question to the girl. “I’ve only been here for a little while, maybe a week or two? I’m from England. Hartford to be specific…I’m one of the Hogwarts students. You’re from here though, from Narnia?” Ash was a little taken back by this. He should have expected it, but it was a new feeling. So many new people, and all wizards from that place called Hogwarts. The last encounter he had did not go so well. Frowning a bit, Ash tried not to draw automatic conclusions though. They can’t all be like that right? “Only a week or two? That isn’t any time at all to see this country chi-…Elysia.” Ash cut himself off, biting his lips together. He had to stop doing that, calling people child, young one and other things like that. But these humans seemed so…young!
Shaking his head a little, Ash gave a small little and slightly stranded smile over towards Elysia as they kept walking. “You are very straightforward aren’t you? Well I’m glad of that. So you are also one of these…Hogwarts…students. And yes, I’m from Narnia. Have you seen much of it since arriving?”
“Only a week or two? That isn’t any time at all to see this country chi-…Elysia.” She noticed the stumble in using her name, like as if he wanted to address her in another manner. She nodded, shuffling her feet in the sand. She hadn’t been out of the castle grounds since she had arrived. Even after Corren had healed her ankle it still had only just gotten to the point where she could use it completely. There was always the threat of re-break, Elysia knew that better than most. “You are very straightforward aren’t you? Well I’m glad of that. So you are also one of these…Hogwarts…students. And yes, I’m from Narnia. Have you seen much of it since arriving?”
The teen snickered slightly. “My straightforwardness, as you put it, gets me in trouble often. Some would say that would be a bad thing. As for seeing Narnia… this is the furthest from the castle I’ve been since I arrived. I broke my ankle when I landed in this world and well…” Elysia shrugged her shoulders. “Something’s can’t be helped.” Obviously since Ash was from Narnia he would know his way around the country. There was far more than just the Castle and Shuttering Wood, where she had arrived. She knew she needed to get out more, and going to the Cove could not be classified as OUT enough. “Even if I wasn’t here in Narnia I would have been all but stuck in a castle, so this is a nice change. Anywhere you suggest I go and see?”
:: tag: Ash :: words: 260 :: :: lyrics:In the Middle of the Night by Within Temptation:: :: outfit: Short Sleeve white blouse, light brown breeches 3/4 length, brown sandals.:: :: note: none
_______________________________________________________________________________ T E L L M E O N E, T H I N G N O W I’ve got years of experience there _______________________________________________________________________________ Walking along, Ash tried his best not to act completely uptight or reserved – as some told him he could be – nor did he want to act completely suspicious of Elysia just yet. Although internally he was. He didn’t like magic, and she was one of them, the magical new arrivals, that were causing a lot of new commotion. But it wasn’t in his nature to just jump to conclusions. And she seemed friendly – if not direct – to him so far. Perhaps that was a good sign that they weren’t so different after all?
Listening to the girl speak, Ash kept quiet, taking everything in and trying his best to analyze it all as he did so. “ My straightforwardness, as you put it, gets me in trouble often. Some would say that would be a bad thing. As for seeing Narnia… this is the furthest from the castle I’ve been since I arrived. I broke my ankle when I landed in this world and well…something’s can’t be helped” Arching his eyebrow up in surprise. So she thought her straightforwardness was almost a weakness – at least trouble – even though he believed quite the opposite. And she has been here for two weeks and hasn’t even seen Narnia! What a time it must be. She has hardly been here at all, at least Ash thinks to himself. Although he doesn’t say a word, only nods.
Even if I wasn’t here in Narnia I would have been all but stuck in a castle, so this is a nice change. Anywhere you suggest I go and see?” Now Ash couldn’t stay quiet. Piercing his lips together, eyes narrow in thought, the man scratched his neck a little as he thought about the question. He couldn’t answer everywhere now could he? After so many years wandering and living here, he knew this place very well. Smiling at some memories that quickly popped into his mind, Ash nodded and looked over to her before speaking. “Why would you have been stuck in a castle anyway? Because you broke your ankle? Isn’t that something you could have…magically fixed?” Ash asked before shaking his head and finally answering her question. “And if this is the furthest you have gotten from Cair, you have missed so much. I know plenty of beautiful places that will leave you speechless I’m sure. I suppose it depends what kind of being you are…” Ash stated, looking straight forward now as he thought about a few possibilities. He didn’t realize that his comments might not make exact sense right away…at least not to a human being. _______________________________________________________________________________
patiently waiting for time, open!
