(no subject)

[starrydome]

 There's an elven lord at a table close to the fire this afternoon. And Elrond actually looks the part today, dressed in linen and silk in tones of grey and blue, delicate like evening mist and just as beautiful. His hair is combed back and studded with a myriad of tiny, silver stars, and he wears jewelry. A star-shaped clasp at his throat, keeping his tunic closed, and a ring. It's a signet ring, not a Ring of Power.

He is sipping tea and slowly going through a stack of maps, sorting them. They take up quite a bit of the table and not two are alike. Neither n what they depict, nor in the materials of which they are made.

He would not at all be adverse to company.

Comments

[electro_kinetic]

Noriko is no elven lord, and that much is pretty obvious by her hair and her clothes; the former is dyed bright blue, and pent up into a braided mohawk, the strip down the center of her scalp itself divided into dozens of plaits and ended with beads. Her clothes are more or less earth-normal for her time--shorts, sneakers, a vibrant yellow tee shirt, and long fingerless arm-warmers, so the metal on her hands won't be so cold (or just weird) to the touch.

Pardon her if she's taking a moment too long to stare at the difference in styles here.

[starrydome]

Elrond can feel the stare and so he looks up, giving the young woman a smile.

"Good afternoon," he says.

He doesn't mind being looked at. His curiosity is much more discreet, but it is there. Her hair especially is noticeable.

[electro_kinetic]

Elrond is, she can say with confidence, a whole lot more interesting than the newspaper she's got folded up--she has other books and things open on her table like she's studying, but the newspaper is holding most of her attention.

"Hi." She blinks, and finally moves her eyes. "Sorry. I don't see many people dressed like you where I come from. It's interesting."

[starrydome]

"I think I could say the same for you," he replies with a small smile. "Very different worlds meet here at Milliways. My name is Elrond Half-elven and my world is called Arda."

[electro_kinetic]

At that, she smiles. "Probably," Nori answers. "Even in my own worldnot a whole lot of people look like me. My name's Noriko Ashida, and I'm from Earth, just not the same one as everybody else. You know X?"

It's the quickest way to skip--or at least postpone--the whole 'you're a what now?' question.

[starrydome]

"X? No, I do not think I have met anyone named X."

No one who have introduced themselves that way at least.

[electro_kinetic]

"X-23, she's security here. A little shorter than me, black hair. She looks kind of tiny, but you really don't want to make her angry at you," Nori explains. "She's from my world. A version of it, anyway."

[gavin62truck]

Oh, look who's also dressed in gray and blue...except the fabrics on this guy are made of mostly cotton and a fire-resistant Nomex/Kevlar blend.

Tommy is just stopping by for some coffee to take back to the firehouse when he sees the elf with his tea and his maps. They haven't spoken in a while, and for some reason Tommy usually kind of feels...better? for talking to him. Much more effective than talking to a shrink, that's for sure.


"Elrond. Hey."

It's not much of a greeting for an elven lord, but for Tommy, his tone is uncharacteristically polite and respectful in a manner he reserves for-- well, elven lords. And that's pretty much it.

"Just thought I'd say hi, but, uh, if you're busy..."

[starrydome]

Elrond looks up and smiles.

"Tommy Gavin. No, I am not busy at all. Please, sit."

He clears a space on the table, moving one of the stacks a little to the side.

He likes the Man. He may be somewhat - rough around the edges, but you can tell he loves his children when he speaks of them, and he has chosen a dangerous line of work to the greater good of his community. That makes up for a lot in Elrond's eyes.

[gavin62truck]

"Oh, okay. Cool. Thanks."

Taking a seat across from him, he wraps both hands around his cup of coffee while eying the stacks of maps a little curiously.

"What's all this? Are they all maps of, like, countries from your world?"

[starrydome]

"Yes," Elrond says. "And more. I am trying to decide which to keep and which to discard. Truly, most of them are of little practical use now, but they are - "

He looks into the air, searching for a way to put it.

"They are memories. Tangible memories. This one I drew up when I first arrived where my home now lies. And this was one of the maps we used during the War of the Last Alliance." He touches each one in turn and then looks back up at Tommy.

"Most of the memories are not happy ones, but they're part of me and it feels strange to let go of these very real reminders."

Wondering if the Man understands what he feels he is not really particularly adept at explaining.

[gavin62truck]

Tilting his head to peer at the maps a little more closely, they're definitely not like a standard subway map or grid of Manhattan. But the way Elrond speaks of them, they carry a more personal, sentimental weight.

"Ah, wow. I guess they're kinda like photographs, where I'm from. Pretty much the definition of tangible memories, I'd say. Bad memories, good ones -- sometimes you just can't help hanging onto reminders of what things were like before."

A thought then strikes him. "And hey, maybe there's like a library or a museum you could give some of 'em to, if you don't wanna throw 'em away? There's people in my world who're really into old historical maps, they study 'em just to see how things've progressed. How much things've changed. What's gone, what's still there." He shrugs a little. "'Specially if you made 'em yourself, it'd be a shame to throw something like that away if you put all that work into it. If you don't keep these things, maybe someone else can appreciate 'em."

[starrydome]

"Not - museums, no," Elrond says slowly. He doesn't know the world, but it makes him think of the mathoms, Bilbo described. Where the hobbits collect old things.

"I imagine that I could send some of them to Gondor. Arwen's children might enjoy seeing things from their mother's childhood home."

The grandchilden he will never meet. This way, at least, they will get to meet him.

[ikissdhimbck]

Kate's eyes go wide the moment she catches sight of him. In fact, it takes her some time to drum up enough courage to go over and say hello.


"Master Elrond. It's good t'see you."

She dips her head politely, and when she raises her face again she's beaming.

"You're quite handsome tonight."

[starrydome]

He looks down at himself, as if he had clean forgotten his own get-up. "Why thank you , Kate. We have a small celebration tonight celebrating First Light, and we tend to dress up a bit for that."

He smiles at her. "And you look lovely, as always."

[ikissdhimbck]

"Next t'you I feel like a pauper."

She laughs softly, shaking her head.

"'First Light'? Is it a celebration like the one I was able to attend?"

[starrydome]

"A beautiful smile is worth a thousand pears, and radiant eyes outshines any jewel," he replies gallantly.

"And it is a smaller, more solemn occasion. We occasionally find occasion to remember the time when the stars were first lit in the sky. We gather outside with lanterns and sing in the night."

He smiles. "It will be cold tonight, but the stars will be beautiful and we will have roasted apples and mulled wine to warm ourselves."

[ikissdhimbck]

Her smile spreads, though she narrows her eyes playfully.

"Now I'm inclined t'think you're jus' butterin' me up."

That's all right; she's not complaining. She bobs slightly out of habit, not deep enough to call it a curtsy, but with the same soundless thank you in the movement.

"That sounds wonderful, weather permittin'. I wish we had celebrations like that among my kinsmen."

[starrydome]

He laughs. "Nothing could be further from the truth."

As for the celebration - "It is one that does not take a crowd. I have done it often enough on my own while on the road."

[thesupersmeller]

Gus is running behind when he slips into the locker and steps out into the bar - a much needed break from the fact that he's spent the whole day both dodging Shawn and trying to get stuff done for Psych and still has three more doctors on his route that go home in two hours.

He needs a drink, badly.

However, after a short trip to the bar to order a pineapple daiquiri and a box of chocolates, he turns to find a booth where he can better hide and happens to see the Elven Lord himself.

And nearly drops his drink. He hasn't seen him since all hell broke loose at the bar, but he hasn't forgotten the calming words of wisdom and how much it meant that someone important - like really, really important if only fictional in Gus' world - had faith in his capability in a time of crisis.

After a long hesitation, and several large sips coupled with his favorite coconut creams, he approaches the table and quietly manages to stumble out; "Lord Elrond, sir... I mean... you probably don't remember me - well, maybe you do, I mean you're kind of amazing... but my name is Gus and you really, really helped me out a lot. And I just wanted to say 'thank you'."

[starrydome]

Elrond looks up.

It's not the first time, he has been approached by someone clearly nervous and a little out of sorts. And he does have a good memory for faces.

So he is being truthful, when he says, "I remember you, Gus," and indicates the seat opposite himself.

"Please."

[thesupersmeller]

Gus blinks several times before he realizes that he's being invited to join him at the table, and it's with a very obvious sense of awe and admiration that he slips into the seat directly across from the elven lord.

"I... wow... I just... yeah. Thanks, man."

[starrydome]

That particular turn of phrase will never cease to amuse him. Just a little bit. And so popular it seems to be too.

"Have you been well, since last we met?" he asks. Better to have a solid topic on the table when the one you speak to looks at you like you just stepped out of a tale of the Time of the Trees.

[thesupersmeller]

That question is enough for Gus to slump slightly in his seat with a somewhat reluctant shrug. He looks away before responding; "Yeah... I guess. You know, just life."

After a long awkward pause, he manages to look back up; "What about you?"

[starrydome]

"I have been well enough," Elrond replies. It is not his place to pry, even when an answer is clearly stretching the truth somewhat.

"I am bringing my affairs in order, getting ready for my departure from my home."