The Dance of the New Moon
- --by PeeJee
'PeeJee and Asherrean' by Caela
The face of Lake Everstill was like a dark mirror reflecting the shining stars on this moonless night. All was peaceful and quiet throughout Lakeshire. Well... almost all.
Within the shadowy house up on the hill, one elven woman was pacing the halls restlessly. For the fifth time she was reorganizing her jars of salves on a shelf in the study. The entire house reflected her state: shadows jumping about, the servants busying themselves with various tasks normally left for the day time when the mistress and her friends were gone. Even her friend and companion was sharing her nervous energy, sitting in his well-worn chair next to the fire, shifting through his notes on the properties of Oshu'gun so fast that his eyes barely touched one page before moving on to the next, not to mention they were now completely out of order. She let out a frustrated sound as her hand bumped one of the delicate jars, sending it off the shelf towards the floor. Bending down, she reached into the shadows that had engulfed the jar before impact, pulling it out intact.
"Thats it! I can't stand this anymore. I'm going outside." As she set the jar on the shelf, her fingers brushed against a small feather someone had lain there. Almost as an after thought she picked it up and carried it with her out of the room.
The man next to the fire set his notes aside, his eyes watching the elf as she moved to leave. He gave the notes a forlorn look and said, almost to himself, "I think I'll join you. I can not seem to make any headway on this tonight anyway. " He rose from his chair, wandering out the door after his friend, "Besides, I could do with a breath of fresh air."
Soon the pair had descended the stairs and were out the door, neither one speaking as they headed down to the shore of the lake. They pause, side by side, taking in the still beauty around them. It was as if a magical veil had descended upon the whole area. Things felt... off.
- The man turns, walking over to the old log that was a favorite resting spot of his. Looking back towards his companion, he catches himself before calling her to come sit with him. Her eyes stare out across the water, yet seem to be looking elsewhere. In almost a trance like state, her hands move to slide the robe from her shoulders. Without uttering a word, she raises the hand still clutching the feather before her and steps skyclad out onto the surface of water, causing not a ripple. A few graceful steps, toe to heel, carry her out from the shallow water and there she looks up to the moonless sky and smiles. As the man watches on, she bows in a graceful Kal'dorei style, then she begins to dance.
- No music is heard, save the beating of his heart. It is almost as if, in that moment, all of creation beats as one, carrying on the rhythm to which his friend dances to. She twirls about, arms held aloft towards the stars, almost as if beckoning them down from the heavens to share in the dance. But they do not come down, rather he watches as the shadows of the depths rise up to be her partners. She gives an elegant pirouette... and his vision shifts.
- With one set of eyes, he watches the purple haired elf dance with the dark shadows of the watery depths. Another pair of eyes sees something a bit different. Its as if her hair suddenly started to grow, lightening to a pale starlight blue until it reached her waist. Her skin seemed to lighten to a pale pink reminiscent of wild flowers. The dancer was not the only one to change, so too the shadows seemed to lighten, reflecting the stars in their depths like pieces of the night sky swirling in their complected dance. A bare shift of his eyes also told him that this vision, as he was coming to think of it, was not taking place in Redridge either. The darkened sandy shore that arched around the bay was lined with Kal'dorei whom he recognized as Priestesses of Elune. Beyond them he saw other Kal'dorei, all arrayed in their Festival best. And every eye was fastened upon she who danced across the surface of the water. Once again he joined them in observing the object of their attention, though he noticed that the voices of the priestesses were now raised in a quiet song. As the movements of the dancer grew in intensity, so did their song. Power flowed between everyone gathered: gaining in strength with every step taken, every note sung, until the very air seemed alive and the world felt like it would burst under the pressure. At that moment, the priestesses ended their song with a triumphant note; the dancer threw her hands upward; and the starry shades shot into the sky above the bay and burst into stardust, raining it down upon all those gathered below.
- While most humans would expect to give great applause and cheering after such a display, the Kal'dorei remained utterly silent. Tired and struggling to catch her breath, the sweat soaked dancer walked to the shore where a lone priestess stands proudly to greet her. As his eyes focus on the green haired priestess, recognition courses though him though he has never seen her clearly before this moment. Nary a word is spoken between mother and daughter, but obvious pride and congratulations is etched on the older elfwoman's features as she holds out a plain robe of the priesthood to the younger elf before standing aside. The dancer's eyes look beyond the priestess and the first real smile reaches their starry blue depths. There, standing slightly apart from the rest, is a pair of older Kal'dorei. He instantly remembers the silver haired female and can guess who the green haired male is by the loving arm draped around his beloved's shoulders. Grandmother reaches for her granddaughter to pull her into a gentle hug. Wordless smiles of love and joy pass between all three until the elder couple moves off with the rest towards the brightly lit city up on the cliffs.
- The man sits there still, his eyes fixed on the dancer as she stands there alone watching her loved ones leave. He can't help but notice the dying joy in her eyes, the other Kal'dorei all keeping their distance: some in awe, others in jealousy, with no few staying away out of fear. As he gazes into her eyes, he hears her calling his name. Blinking, the smiling face with sad and lonely eyes gives way to a frowning face with joyous yet concerned eyes.
"Did my dancing bore you so much you slept with your eyes open?" The elfwoman pulled her robe closed as she moved to stand beside her friend.
He blinked a few more times, shaking his head to clear the last few remnants of the vision from his eyes. "No, not in the least..." One arm snaked out to wrap around her waist and pull her down onto his lap. He smiled at her surprised 'eep', then held her close as he told her all he had just seen.
~fin~