Lim Aear

Disclaimer: See Prologue.


italics: thoughts

Chapter 1


Somewhere in the world, 2006

She raced down the stairs to pick up the phone.

“Hello?”

“Elaine, why are you breathless?”

“Oh, hey mom! I was upstairs…-”, breath, “…-and had to run down to get the phone-… “ deep breath,… “-that’s why!”

She sat down on the couch and tried to find her normal breathing speed.

“Whatever. Is everything ok over there? Do you need anything? If you do…-“

“-…I’ll call Grandma, I know. How is France?”

“Oh, amazing as always! Your father and sister are swimming in a lake and I’m in a nice little café with Pauline.”

“Cool.” She twirled the phone’s cord around her finger and started biting it.

“Have you called your cousins over yet?”

“Not yet.”

Her mother sighed.

“Elaine, I don’t want you to be alone over there!”

“Mom, I’m not alone!!” she protested. “Jessica’s here and some other friends from school and…-”

“Ok, ok, fine. Do whatever you like, just be careful. It gets dangerous at night, it’s dark and there are strange people out there.”

“Yes Mom, I’ve heard this a thousand times before!”

“Alright, a thousand and one then! I gotta go. Take care!”

“Have a nice time! Bye!”

She hung up and lay down on the couch. Life was finally getting better. Her parents and sister would stay in France for one month and she would finally be able to have some time for herself at their beach house. It was on a very beautiful beach that looked exotic. The golden sand and clear water made the site look as if it was a picture ripped out of a Hawaiian travel book. The shining sun kissed the sand for a few miles, all of which Elaine knew by heart. The house was right at the beginning of the beach, which met with a rocky hill at its right. She had gone climbing on those rocks many times, but had found it hard the last three years, because, strangely, some thick bushes had grown up in front of them, where water had not covered them. When she was younger, she used to jump from rock to rock, do a circle around the small cape and reach the small harbor. But along with the vegetation, the waves had also grown wilder making it very dangerous to approach.

She stretched and got up. She remembered her favorite CD was playing upstairs, so she ran up the stairs to her bedroom. Once inside, she turned the volume down a bit and leaned on her window’s ceiling. It was a perfect evening. People had finally left the beach and everything was so peaceful. The last rays of the sun were caressing the powdery sand and painting the sea with red and orange colors. It was simply breathtaking.

The last track of the CD ended, but she didn’t notice the music had stopped. She was still gazing at the beach, its peace finding its way into her heart. It had been a long time since she had last felt so peaceful. Yes, it was her fault. Or that’s what she thought. And she had chosen to suffer the pain alone.

She felt the familiar lump form in her throat. She closed her eyes holding back tears that threatened to fall. No, she thought desperately. I will not cry today. The light breeze brushed her locks off her face and she breathed in deeply.

Music. It was a familiar music.

The waves, the trees, the flowers, the sand.

The Elves.

She opened her eyes frowning. She was too old to believe in fairytales. Too old to believe in an old white-haired fisherman, with the long white beard and the pointed hat, who had become after all those years a faint memory. People said he was crazy. Was he? She had heard the music many times. Their voices. She even thought she could see them late at night, gliding on the beach, their skin glowing, their clothes flowing in the light breeze.

Or it was just dreams. Yes, that’s what it was. After all, she was too old to believe in fairytales. Too hurt to believe in immortality. Forever did not exist for her. Someone had promised her forever, but was gone way too soon.

Her gaze fell back to the sea. The waters looked… tempting. Her eyes widened at the idea that had just landed on her mind… Yes, swimming at night was something she had wanted to do for many years now, but never had the chance. She put on her swimming suit quickly and grabbing her towel, she flew down the stairs to the kitchen. When she found her keys, she got out and locked the door behind her.

****************************************************************************


Legolas sprinted up the stairs that lead to the Gate. It was a beautiful night with a full moon. He could feel it. Reaching the Gate, he said the password and it opened almost noiselessly. After a few more stairs, he reached the entrance of the cave that stood at the right end of the beach, hidden behind bushes and rocks somewhere at the base of the rocky hill. The bushes made way for him and he kneeled down behind a rock. Peering around it carefully, he saw that no one was on the beach and it was already dark. Just as he was about to come out of his hidden spot, his Elven eyesight caught movement in the water. He did not move to hide himself further, for he knew it would be a Man who wouldn’t be able to see or hear him because of the dark.

A person came out from underwater and jerked their hair back. A female, he thought. He knew that not many males of this age had long hair. She secured her hair with a band in a low ponytail and started walking slowly to the shore.

A smile appeared on his lips. She was beautiful. She was slowly walking to the shore, the water making it hard to reach it in a normal pace. His eyes fell to her long legs, the soft curves of her hips and then up to her breasts, held back by what they called “a bikini”. Even though he had got used to the sight of women in this piece of… clothing (which, he noted, was getting smaller as time went by), it still made him uncomfortable.

For thousands of years, his people had watched the race of Men develop. Many times he had found himself surprised at their achievements and their rapid progress. And every time his people had to adjust their way of living to secure their existence. First they had to hide in the woods and when most of them were destroyed, they found refuge in the enormous cavern system they had found underground. It was actually an underground lake, the Lim Aear or Clear Sea, as they had named it, and on its shores, they had managed to build their elegant houses. Lady Galadriel had blessed the ground with her magic and trees and flowers had grown under the surface of Earth, making the cave feel more like home to them.

A number of stairs lead to the Gate, made of solid rock, which was unapproachable to Men, since they would have to use a ‘key’ in the shape of a leaf, that only elves held in their possession. They never used it though, because they had the privilege of saying a secret password and the Gate would open for them, whereas a human could not command the gate. Many elves would climb up the stairs to the world of Men and wander on the beach late at night to admire their beloved stars, but when some rumors were heard that they had been seen, they had to stay in Lim Aear for eight years, long enough to be forgotten by Men. This time they were more careful and had grown some bushes in front of the cave that lead to the Gate, so that people wouldn’t be able to even approach.

But they were not able to get rid of the orcs. They had found a passage that lead to the other end of the long lake and they had made themselves home there. Their numbers had grown worryingly and sometimes they would even go up to the world of Men, creating legends of monsters or what humans called werewolves wandering in the woods late at night. Or they would build ships to get to the other end of the lake and cause problems to the Elves, as they had always had.

His attention was brought back to the young woman, who was now getting out of the sea. The pale moonlight made her look like an ethereal creature, her skin ornate with little diamonds, drops of salty water that trickled down her lithe body.

He shifted uncomfortably in his leggings. The familiar heat that had risen through his body, warned him he should stop entertaining inappropriate thoughts about her. She was but a mortal child and he had no interest for such things. But those legs…

Stop it!

He shook his head. He was being ridiculous. This wasn’t the first time he had seen a woman like that. His thoughts were certainly unacceptable and un-elf-like. However, his eyes were drawn to her every time he tried to look away.

His thoughts were interrupted when she turned her face towards him. Had she seen him? That was impossible. It was very dark and the race of Men was not known for their eyesight or hearing. Nor were they beautiful like Elves. But this woman before him had something that made him feel like no other elven maiden had ever done, and not a few of them had tried to gain his attention.

The eyes. It was the eyes. Those deep, forest green eyes.

He stared in shock. “It cannot be…” he whispered.

She was the girl. The girl he had seen talking with Mithrandir years ago. The girl with the most intriguing green eyes he had ever seen in his long life. She was always alert and looked around her watchful, her ears trying to pick up a sound of his folk. Sometimes he thought she could even see him and the rest of the Elves. Those eight years, when they had stayed out of Men’s sight, he had not seen her at all. The last picture of her was that of a spirited girl, jumping from rock to rock, right next to the entrance of the cave that lead to Lim Aear. That little girl was the beautiful woman before him.

So deep was he in shock, that he never noticed the man approaching the young woman.