mimi_sardinia (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
mimi_sardinia) wrote in ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png)
houseofstrange2022-06-06 03:20 pm
mimi_sardinia) wrote in houseofstrange2022-06-06 03:20 pm
Entry tags:
Nightlands: Veriél's Romance
I have been going through thinking my way around the story behind Veriél and how she met her husband.
It happens some time after the war that led to the founding of the Southern Kingdom, with Veriél on the road as one of her aunt's Wanderers.
At the time they meet he is just one of his Elenimbë's warriors, gotten a bit lost while doing a messenger mission to one of the big Lómaquendár cities in the north. They meet in the wilds of the central Northlands, running into (and from) dangerous creatures.
He thinks Veriél looks human, but is confused by her strong arcane presence, which while she is hiding most of it, circumstance means she can't hide all of it, all the time.
She agrees, somewhat grumpily, to help him find his way back south, but over the course of doing so they run into more troubles that bring up more questions about her nature that she initially was not willing to open up about to a stranger.
Edit: Re-thinking how I see this, because I had more time to let the line of thought develop.
The course I see is one that does not start out with instant attraction, more due to being way too busy getting out of trouble and finding a way to head for his* homeland. (*I am giving him the name Taurán.) Taurán got into a situation where he couldn't portal home, so he had to go overland, which is what landed him in trouble, getting caught in a minor conflict between local creatures. It is in the middle of this Veriél steps in and ends up helping Taurán out of it. Veriél offers to act as a guide to get him back to land he is familiar with, and over time they slowly come to trust each other and open up a bit. They also run into other situations, partly due to Veriél having tasks she was already on the way to - mostly messenger missions. They stop in at the Southern Kingdom capital and stay over with Damián at the transit hub he is leading the formation of. Taurán is a bit bemused by how Elven Damián looks compared to Veriél's very human cast (she does have pointed ears but often has her hair covering them).
It is as they are heading into the Endanóryanwë that they get into bigger trouble, running into Agar forces who decide to stall them, eventually calling in Unseelie allies on them, prompting Veriél to shapeshift into her draconic form, a form that at that time she had not had a lot of practice in using, and flying to escape. Taurán is able to link telepathically with her and direct her into the mountains, to a hidden cave where a gateway that can be used to access a few of the Endanóryanwë Elenimbér (with the appropriately assigned keystone). Veriél collapses unconscious once she returns to her normal form, so Taurán takes her with him to Endáelenimbë.
The full effect of the emotions of the whole journey finally hit after she wakes, and intimate makeout happens. Further action they hold off on, out of a sense of honour, but their bond is all but a given by this point. It takes a while but plans are made for their wedding and Taurán agrees to having a ceremony in Hópa Elenna, including going on the pre-wedding trip to the hotsprings. At least for these two, it is less the engagement and more a pre-wedding getaway with the celebration they come back to is the formal wedding ceremony, with a strong Quendár lean to it (since Taurán's parents and a few other people from Endáelenimbë are present.
(And because it is within their lifetime, the first king and queen of the Southern Kingdom came with Damián, along with a couple of their younger children (including the daughter that was secretly Damián's.)
It happens some time after the war that led to the founding of the Southern Kingdom, with Veriél on the road as one of her aunt's Wanderers.
At the time they meet he is just one of his Elenimbë's warriors, gotten a bit lost while doing a messenger mission to one of the big Lómaquendár cities in the north. They meet in the wilds of the central Northlands, running into (and from) dangerous creatures.
He thinks Veriél looks human, but is confused by her strong arcane presence, which while she is hiding most of it, circumstance means she can't hide all of it, all the time.
She agrees, somewhat grumpily, to help him find his way back south, but over the course of doing so they run into more troubles that bring up more questions about her nature that she initially was not willing to open up about to a stranger.
Edit: Re-thinking how I see this, because I had more time to let the line of thought develop.
The course I see is one that does not start out with instant attraction, more due to being way too busy getting out of trouble and finding a way to head for his* homeland. (*I am giving him the name Taurán.) Taurán got into a situation where he couldn't portal home, so he had to go overland, which is what landed him in trouble, getting caught in a minor conflict between local creatures. It is in the middle of this Veriél steps in and ends up helping Taurán out of it. Veriél offers to act as a guide to get him back to land he is familiar with, and over time they slowly come to trust each other and open up a bit. They also run into other situations, partly due to Veriél having tasks she was already on the way to - mostly messenger missions. They stop in at the Southern Kingdom capital and stay over with Damián at the transit hub he is leading the formation of. Taurán is a bit bemused by how Elven Damián looks compared to Veriél's very human cast (she does have pointed ears but often has her hair covering them).
It is as they are heading into the Endanóryanwë that they get into bigger trouble, running into Agar forces who decide to stall them, eventually calling in Unseelie allies on them, prompting Veriél to shapeshift into her draconic form, a form that at that time she had not had a lot of practice in using, and flying to escape. Taurán is able to link telepathically with her and direct her into the mountains, to a hidden cave where a gateway that can be used to access a few of the Endanóryanwë Elenimbér (with the appropriately assigned keystone). Veriél collapses unconscious once she returns to her normal form, so Taurán takes her with him to Endáelenimbë.
The full effect of the emotions of the whole journey finally hit after she wakes, and intimate makeout happens. Further action they hold off on, out of a sense of honour, but their bond is all but a given by this point. It takes a while but plans are made for their wedding and Taurán agrees to having a ceremony in Hópa Elenna, including going on the pre-wedding trip to the hotsprings. At least for these two, it is less the engagement and more a pre-wedding getaway with the celebration they come back to is the formal wedding ceremony, with a strong Quendár lean to it (since Taurán's parents and a few other people from Endáelenimbë are present.
(And because it is within their lifetime, the first king and queen of the Southern Kingdom came with Damián, along with a couple of their younger children (including the daughter that was secretly Damián's.)