FOROCHEL FEVER
A tale of a woman called Ynel, who once ventured to the frozen lands.
The following is a caption of the story consisting of 7 parts, which are as following:
1. Prologue
2. Dwarves, Angmarim & alliances
3. Letter with conclusions
4. Painful search
5. Fish-tales
6. Strangers in the night
7. Closure
You are now reading...
PART 6: Strangers in the Night
One cold night at Kauppa-kohta....
Ynel hurries up the hill, hugging herself and panting
You say, 'Oh.. this camp is taken...'
Hiath wrapped himself tightly in his furs, looking to the woman, his hood covering his face. "Aye... though there are room for plenty."
Ynel blinks her frozen eyelashes and continues to blow mist into the air as she wathes the stranger who just spoke. She seems petrified for a moment before she peaks again. "Says who?"
Hiath says, 'The lossoth. They fit many up here in the cold.'
Ynel sizes the man up with those blinking eyes that seem to want a rest from the cold, yet not miss a blink of this new interest that they've found. She sizes him up carefully, takign her time again, before she speaks. "You are not one? A lossoth..."
Hiath shook his head, pushing his hood back to reveal snow littered brown hair with a scruffy brown beards. With dark blue eyes with hints of grey in them, "No. I am from the South."
Ynel jerks a momentary smile ad nods her head at that. She glances at the other peoep lin the camp, and murmurs under her breath to the man. "I am surprised that they've welcomed you. They are not too fond of strangers, from what I've seen. Do you speak their language, by chanse?
Hiath says, 'No, I do not speak their language but I brought them a large deer that I traded for their kindness. What about you? Are you of the lossoth? With hair like honey and as skin as white as the snow that falls?'
Ynel smiles a litlte more, maybe amused by his words. "No, I am not. I am an outsider, still, even after months of stay here, it seems." Then she tilts her head and looks at him curiously. "There is another camp a little higher. Would you like to see if that one is occupied?"
Hiath nodded his head, "Lead the way, maiden." He smiled, pulling his hood up again.
You look around.
You say, 'It seems empty.'
Hiath walked over to the tent, opening the door and looking in. "It is."
Ynel steps near the fire and clutches her cloak tighter aroudn herself. "Perfect then. I doubt anyoen minds our presence here."
Ynel takes a log from the pile nearby and toses it into the fire to revoke it
Hiath says, 'Aye. Are you cold?'
Hiath went over to her, placing his pack to the ground.
You say, 'Yes, very much so. But the dawn is here and it'll be fine soon. The mornigns are the worst! How long have you been here?'
Hiath says, 'A week or so..'
Hiath undid the furs on his shoulders, before leaning over and placing them on her shoulders.
Ynel stiffens at first, cautious about the gesture, but accepts it in the end. She even smiles a bit. "What is your name?"
Hiath says, 'Hiath, a Vagabond of the South. And you? Is your name as beautiful as your looks?'
Ynel looks amused by the flattery again, but doesn't seem to mind it. "Ynel. Also a vagabond, although I've found peaceful life in this region as a fisherman....woman. I hope that I do not stink too much for my looks?"
Hiath leaned over to take in a sniff, curious to what she may smell like.
Ynel Watches him carefull wth her lashes blinking. They seem to have melted the layer of frost on them in the firelight. She smells quite neutral, perhaps due to the cold conditions. "It was a joke. Hoepfully. Ofcourse I bathe....when I can."
Hiath says, 'I was just curious.. the woman of Dol Amroth smell a bit fishy. I have not had a full on bathe in a long time, just rivers and lakes..'
Ynel smiles "Then maybe you'll be curious to know, that I have built a sauna here. In my camp, by the seaside, where I fish. That is where I do my fishing....or.." she turns more serious and her brow grows heavy "..used to. Currently I am a refuge due to a worrying and so far uncertain threat that I wish to resolve."
Hiath says, 'And what threat is that?'
Ynel purses her lip and looks him over again carefully. She steps to the other side of the fire and gazes at him over the flames. "I am hesitant to tell. But I will, if you think that you coudl help me?"
Hiath says, 'Of course I can help.'
Ynel weaves her head sowly from side to side, watching him and weighting his assurance. "You are a good hunter atleast..." she muses, pursing her lips. "Are you also strong?"
Hiath says, 'If I was not wearing my furs, I would take off my clothes to show you the muscle beneath. You can feel them over the top, if you wish.'
Ynel can't help but smile, even though it's clear she tries not to. She goes aroudn the fire once more to make a full circle, and comes to his side.
Ynel touches his arm, squeesing it from the wrist up towards his shoulder.
Hiath tensed his arm as she felt it, underneath she would feel the clear muscle of a toned man, who can lift a good amount of weight if he tried.
Ynel smiles faintly "And you can wield that sword of yours? What about your head? Are you strong there aswell?" she questions him with a rather strange, almost alluring tone to her voice. "Are you brave?"
Hiath says, 'If I could not wield my sword, then I would not carry it. And I am smart at times, and brave.. of course. It is one of the things that make me myself.'
Hiath nodded with a smile, pushing back his hood again.
Ynel smiles more widely, so that her blue eyes light up. "Atleast you are not lacking in self confidense." she comments humorously. "Many a man woudl be more modest, but hen again..why woudl you be?" she shrugs some. "I am sure that you coudl help me, Hiath, but I can't think of why you would? Exept for a chanse to bathe in a sauna, that is..."
Hiath says, 'It sounds a good reward.. is there anything else that I could be getting? The way you are describing this, it does not sound like it will be easy.'
Ynel shakes her head and lowers it to look down. "No, it wont be easy...or that depends. It will take alot of courage, if it leads to where I wish to take it. You see..." she moves aroudn him and then around the fire again to her previous position.
Hiath says, 'Then that I think deserves a higher reward than just a sauna trip, no?'
Hiath raised a brow with a small smirk, folding his arms.
Ynel wets her lip and soon regrets it when the cold begins biting the moisture on it. "I believe so. But I also believe that I can make it worth your while, if you want to go all the way..."
You say, 'I am very good at it. Finding atisfaction between parties.'
Hiath says, 'I will go all the way.. what will that worth while thing be?'
You say, 'A possible terror of unnatural kind. I am not yet all certain if we will ever see it...but I intend to. You see..I left my camp, because I found out, that I may not be as alone there as I thought I woudl be. I had thought, that the camp was abandoned, so I made my home there. But then I heard a story...about a great water-fiend that lives in the sea."'
Hiath nods as he listened, his arms crossed.
Ynel sighs a little bit before she continues "The water-fiend is known by the lossoth, and it is my camp where it raises to claim sacrifice. The lossoth bring it this and that, in hopes to keep it's favor on their side. Now, ofcourse this is worrying to me, because I do not want to end up being mistaken for a sacrifice. And it is my camp...I built a sauna there, I make my living >
Ynel -by pulling fish form the sea there. I do not want to leave, because I have very few other places to go."
Hiath says, 'So you want to kill this water-fiend?'
Ynel shakes her head rapidly "No...nothing of the kind. I wish to talk to it." She nods her head in turn now. "The story that I heard told, that the water-fiend once spoke to the lossoth, and even gave them some gift and some tasks. So I believe, that there may be a chanse to solve the issue by talking. Nevertheless, it is a frightening thought!"
Hiath says, 'Ah.. I understand. But what is my reward?'
Ynel cants her head again "Why are you here? Maybe I can help you in return?"
Hiath says, 'I just came beacuse I am a vagabond. I travel. I meet maidens, see the lands and such.'
Ynel smiles again "The maidens of this land are not as welcoming as in the south. I think you'll be happy for that sauna....and my company." She circles back to his side and looks into his eyes for a while. Then she averts her gaze from him, and looks into the fire when she leans her head to his shoulder. "Do you know the song about the vagabond and the cat?"
Hiath looked to her eyes, a small smirk on his lips before he looked to the fire as she leaned on him, shaking his head. "No, I have not."
You say, 'In the song there is a vagabond, who gets cold by night and looks for shelter in and empty house. By some miracle, there are glowing embers in the hearth, so small that he doesn't even dare to blow into them, but spends the night hunched near and staring into them, and the glow keeps him warm for the night.'
You say, 'By morning he realizes that it was a cat in the hearth, whose eyes made that glow, and not embers at all. And they continue their travels together.'
Hiath says, 'Are you by any chance a cat?'
Hiath chuckled softly as he looked to her.
Ynel tilts her head up, still leaning it to his shoulder and glances into his eyes with a smile. "Who knows... perhaps." she muses, and lowers her head, rubbing it against the shoulder that it rests on. "Do you think I'd keep you warm....with my eyes?"
Hiath says, 'Maybe not just with your eyes alone.'
iath says, 'The rest of you.. I think there is a way both of us can keep warm together at nights.'
Ynel remain quiet for a while, seemign contnent to just stand there leaned to him before she asks: "How far north do you intend to go?"
Hiath says, 'I only came to see the snow. I do not know how far I will go, I do not plan.'
You say, 'Well, you certainly must see the Ocean too. That is where my camp lies.
Hiath says, 'Then I will be happy to go there.'
Hiath went to place his arm around her gently and comfortably.
Ynel moves sightly, so that she can face him and look into his eyes again. "Then it's agreed? You'll cover my back, when I attempt to talk to the fiend?"
Hiath looked down to her eyes, "Agreed. I will do just that."
