Peredhil

Curtain up. On stage, are Salinye dressed in matronly attire as an Austrian Matriarch circa 1700s. Alaeha sits in a wooden rocking chair, creaking and embroidering on a satin heart-shaped pillow. She is dressed in simple browns and blacks, and her hair is under a kerchief. Stage left is a table. One of its four legs is short, propped with a brick. Table center is a thick white wax candle of spiral design. Spaced evenly down the side facing the audience (down stage) are small black wooden pegs. Several wax-laden pegs lie in the white wax pool around the candle. Stage right is a stout chest with an large obvious lock closing it. Upstage center is a door, while stage right on the wall beside the door is a four-pane window (black glass) with plain curtains held to sides with twine ties. Action starts with Salinye pacing. Salinye: Stops and glares at the candle. Look at the time. There be only four more hours until the dawn pegs fall. I sit with no husband, a willing spinster, and a melted candle for nought! Alaeha: without looking up Prithee Mother, calm thyself. Thou are not sitting, thou indeed stand or stride like a cheetah, with great haste. Salinye: Turns her glare on Alaeha and begins pacing again. Ever thou jests, as time's hands clench me tight and seek to draw me to a widow's grave! What and what again, do you think you'll continue such life of reading and contemplation after I be gone? Fine it was for you when thy father indulged you and considered thy stubborn ways to be the charm of willful child. He was ever "Yo ho ho and a bottle of rum!'' to his boon companions, but when work came he was ever to be found telling you his traveling lies. Now he lies wormbait and thy sixteenth birthday approach and thou aren't still unwed. Nay, unpromised and uncourted! Alaeha: The so-called men of this town are wretched beasts. Beasts! Thou has had laden the table with foolish feasts that fatten them for time's slaughter. Stuffing faces they spout fatuous lies and seek to pinch my knees under thy own table, with your willing encouragement! I'm not a beast, not to be bartered. My father, thy husband, was better man in his cups than any of the courtly or rich bulls you pasture here on Sabboth! You, Lady Cheetah waiting on your purchased Baba Yaga! Next Sunday it will be Lady Cheetah and her beast supping while I suffer the onslaught of lamely lustful rhymes! Salinye: Beasts! Men of substance willing to put up with venomous shrew! With thy spiteful tongue thou has put many suitor to flight! comely on outside but a thousand stings within, my little honeybee. Humble thyself and assure your future! What is woman without man? Leaf tossed by every passing rogue breezing by, 'till weighted down with bastard child! Alaeha: As thou, sweet mother, would seek to weight me with one of thy beasts? Should I seek to escape next supper? I'd leave behind me four hippopotami with a cheetah! Salinye: River horses now? Such fables were fine when thou rests thy face on father's knee, to gaze with shining eyes at his lies, but the only horses belong not to us! Clean is our stable, for nothing sleeps within. Stomps to window and looks out. Drat that man, taking a portion of thy dowry and disappearing! Sworn he is to come hither tonight, bringing the best youth of the next town to meet thee! Alaeha: A Swedish matchmaker thou hired, and wonder why he fled. He's not traveled in to next hamlet in this weather; he's safely home in bed. My dowry, my fortune, lies not in yon chest, points to chest on floor or even in this one! points to bosum. My treasures are in here points to head and heart and cannot be bartered to callow youth! Salinye: Oh treasures indeed! Empty head and hateful heart, presented to the man as advertising and we'd have an angry Swedish matchmaker! Nay, silver, gold, even sweet words and heaving chest might sell. A woman with brains? Never! Knock at the door. Salinye smooths her apron and fixes a smile on her face. Alaeha glares at the door and sets the pillow at her side against the chair, facing the audience. A large jagged yellow Lighting bolt splits the red heart. Salinye Opening door: Welcome sir, though late the hour! We two have waited most eagerly on thy arrival! Alaeha Aside to audience: We two? She be aside herself with desire to sell my maidenhead. enter the Swedish Matchmaker (Gyrfalcon) carrying Zool's Portrait. Zool is dressed in his usual unique splendor. Salinye stares in dismay as Zool winks an animated eye at her. Gyrfalcon: Nay nay, I know and here's thy refund less travel expense. Of all the towns nearby, thy brat's fame is spread. No decent man will seek this viper's bed. Only this enchanted Prince Zool waves a lace hanky and rolls his eyes. an interest has expressed. I convinced him that in stories and conversations thine daughter was apt, and with portrait as husband, she can stay dressed. Zool visibly starts and frowns at this last, but looks hopefully at Alaeha. She blushes at the visible lust, but doesn't turn away. Salinye: Observes the byplay between daughter and painting with a calculating look, then looks the Matchmaker up and down. Lean Master Paint against the table then, and let us bargain. Once maiden is betrothed and wed, this house will have an empty bed. Widowed am I, but not nearly dead. Gyrfalcon returns the look she gives him with interest. Perhaps I'll be using your services, Matchmaker, in the future... Curtain falls. Gyrfalcon comes out and addresses audience. Maiden and Prince converse each night and are happy, but the wedding was hard to arrange. Finally a hermit monk was paid a pittance and a cask of wine and agreed to marry the magical duo. If ever they kiss, his enchantment will break and they may seek his kingdom. Thus far, she shows no interest at all. Under the modest clothes was a tigress heart, after the daughter was gone, we wooed and wed with cheetah's speed. Soon we'll return to my Swedish mountains and climb together to ecstasy's heights. All's well that ends better!

Take #2 With ill-concealed venom, the volcano vomited its bile and watched its myriad tongues in their turgid journeys creep like centipede legs to grasp and kill all who fled too slowly, or who'd fallen to the aphyxiating breath belched in warning. The bipedal grubs who'd denied feeding its hunger in their conversion to the pale idol's ways would learn, oh yes, they'd learn...

Take #1 Sad and lonely, he espied a simple leaf, the last of Fall's clothing to remain, holding onto it's Summer branch. The playful breeze teased and played, coquettishly seducing the last leaf to take the leap of faith and give in to the breeze's soft embrace. Together they danced, the leaf twisting and turning, quite out of its depths, the breeze delighting in having swept it off it's perch. The leaf began to get the drift, and bounced with the jerky motions of a butterfly, a flutter by the breeze's breath, finally surfing and swooping skillfully about the clearing playing tag with the afternoon shadows and light. Until the breeze tired of its latest lover, and dropping it onto the corpses of its former conquest, went seeking another. He observed the leaf, left alone in grief, and saw himself.

Parental Unit safely back in his rooms, Elladan roamed the carnival area when he made an espial of a wet Wyvern with Hawaiian panties and bra hit his wandering eye. Only five Geld to dunk that? Plunking down his money posthaste, he accepted a single ball, handing back the others. Eyes narrowing in concentration, he checked all directions, wound up... and threw the ball. High high over Wyvern's head. "Har har! You missed by a mile!" Chortled the espiegle Wyvern in delight. The ball sailed up, and ricochetting off the carved cornice of a window and disappearing into the sun's glare. Wyvern continued to attempt to raise money by (carefully) taunting Elladan, who smiled, waved, and walked away. Moments later, the nearly spent ball completed its wayward journey with a feeble tap on the drop-plate, sending Wyvern plummeting once more into the watery embrace of the tank...

Ouch. Or in other words, DoomGaze, this was a well written piece.

Peredhil raises an eyebrow as his wayward Bodyguards show up for the show - on stage in lingerie. At the Announcement, he freezes and turns to fix Elladan with a Stare... Which Elladan returns with an impudent grin. At which they both break out in gails of uncontrolled laughter.

As Wyvern reviews the application of an Applicant, He enjoys driving Melba nuts with a very repetitious chant, It isn't clever wit or banter, He's a very monotonous chanter... "I love geld, I love geld", Sings the Elder, "I love geld, I love geld!" Is what he tells her. "I love geld", "I love geld", Is the repetition, "I love geld", "I love geld!" Projects his superstition. "I love geld", "I love geld", Dreams the Application Reviewer, "I love geld", "I love geld- And I wish Melba's pounds were fewer!" And that's when she reaches for the Wyvern mallet Such repetitious singing is hard to pallet. But as with his scaly head the bonking instrument will meld... You'll hear him still singing "I LOVE GELD!"

Alliteration is nearly all about sound - it's a figure of speech which is strongest when said. That's one reason I threw in "Sincerity" and "Certainty", to illustrate that point. They start and end with the similar sounds - it's pleasing to the ear when spoken. Plus they have the same number of syllables when sounding off the tongue. I usually double-check my works by reading them back to myself - often backward so I can ensure I'm reading what is there instead of what I intended. That checks the flow, the foot, the meter, etc. so Giraffe (Jir - ahff), Guess (guh#ess), and Gnat (Naht) have different start sounds (particularly "gnat"). (dash(-) to separate syllables, pound(#)to indicate one syllable but emphasize the sound the "g" makes.) Peredhil's two-cents

took the liberty of linking Peredhil's date with Tanuchan in the post which started this thread.

Tanuchan pushed the leaf she wore as a hat forward aggressively as she waddled up to the door. The portly raccoon-dog shape was ideally suited with small quick prehensile hands to manipulate in the enclosed area under a sink. Especially a sink with a small piece of soap which had attracted too much hair and therefore clogged. As such, it was an annoyance to have to answer the door. On opening it, however, her eyes glowed darkly in happy surprise. Guido stood grinning widely, holding a small package. Looking down, he exclaimed, “Kincho?” before realizing the proverbial Golden Balls weren’t present. “Tanny? I t’ought youse was a wolf-lady.” With a Tanuki’s mischievous smile, Tanuchan shimmered in to a black lupine form, and then into her own raven-haired beauty. “I am more than meets the eye, Guido.” To her surprise, Guido sang the refrain “Ponpoko Pon no Pon” from the children’s Tanuki song Shojoji no Tanuki Bayashi before returning to the matter at hand. “Da Boss sent dis t’ing fer youse to wear on da date t’ing tanight. He said it goes wi’t anyt’ing.” Lavishly bowing, Guido presents the package with a wink and a grin. Tanuchan looked at it in dismay, for it was a very *small* package. When she looked up the Bodyguard was gone. Leaving it to open later, she returned to war with the plumbing, shrinking and growing ears and tail in a style reminiscent of Mario when he obtains the Tanuki Leaf in Super Mario Three. Peredhil continued to poke gentle fun at Elladan as he approached Tanuchan’s rooms. “You know, when Guido stated emphatically that he wanted to wait on Nuncio to hear all about his date, I thought you’d do the same for Elrohir.” ‘Dan didn’t bother to reply, scanning the environment casually. “I really don’t need a bodyguard tonight, and Tanuchan will be with me. You’d think I’d never fought at Gil-Galad’s side. I’m peaceful, but protective.” ‘Dan nodded respectfully but didn’t take the hint. With a sigh, Peredhil resigned himself to being guarded. Adjusting the flower in his lapel, he approached the door. Tanuchan looked at the twisted wisp of satin and silk in dismay. She simply couldn’t believe someone like Peredhil would expect her to wear this. Perhaps he’d meant she should use it as a set of joined handkerchiefs in case she sneezed? Looking at the delicate fabric, she decided that there wasn’t enough for even that. Grinning impishly, she decided to try it on just once, here in the privacy of her room, before finding real attire. Maybe she’d wear it underneath, as a personal secret of feminine power. It didn’t take but a moment to put the garment on, for there wasn’t much to it. Once in place though, it tickled with power as it flowed to cover her. As she reflexively changed into her protective wolf-form, she caught a glimpse of a flowing high-bodiced gown. Looking back at herself in the mirror, she saw she wore a light large-linked silver chain around her neck, the eye of each link containing a dark opal. Changing to Tanuki shape, she wore the sacred Lotus leaf on her head. Eyes narrowing, she changed back to human-form – and wore a flowing dress which adapted smoothly to every movement, revealing beauty but concealing modesty, flattering without being ostentatious. As she approached the door, the garment flowed into a formal gown and she found herself wearing heels – but perfectly balanced. Opening the door, her date was dressed in a broad-lapelled tuxedo with a pale yellow carnation. Peredhil beamed as Tanuchan opened the door. “May I pin your corsage?” He held the baby-breath-centered orchid up for her inspection. Elladan, also dressed in a tuxedo, but wearing mirrored sunglasses flashed a blinding smile. “I’m your chauffeur tonight,” he said quietly, before drifting down the corridor a few feet. “Sorry about that, but I’m overly protected.” Peredhil frowned, “Are you ready?” He extended an arm for her and they walked down the corridor toward Elladan. As they approached, ‘Dan muttered and made a Gesture. Flexing his fingers, ‘Dan disappeared through the lens, then poked his head back through and nodded. Tanuchan felt a shiver and a tingle as she stepped through into a grassy clearing. Small shimmering motes danced in the golden shafts of sunlight slanting across the tree-enclosed place. Weeping willows bent low over a clear running stream, which babbled happily over a low waterfall before rushing away to unknown destinations. Tall oak and elm guarded the sides and stood sentinel duty as they quietly conversed with rustled leaves and gently swaying branches. The day was warm without being stuffy, and a small breeze played tag about the clearing, while a chorus of birds expressed joy in life as background music. Her clothing had changed to comfortable jeans, embroidered and yoked cotton shirt with bloused sleeves, and Birkenstock sandals, all in varied shades of black and grey. Peredhil now wore similar matching clothing, but in blues which matched his Ring. A picnic was laid out on a white and red checked blanket, with a large whickered basket showing tantalizing hints of desserts to come. Moving to the stream, Peredhil pulled a bottle of wine from the waterfall’s chilling embrace and brought it back to the spread. Elladan was no where in sight. “I hope this is to your liking. A simple feast, pleasant company, and when dusk kisses the sky, I thought perhaps we could run together as wolves through the woods, tasting the night with all our senses under the magic of the gibbous moon. Looking for her approval, he read the message in her dark eyes, and smiled in relief. "Peredhil, this is lovely. I've never had a sweeter date in all my life." Tanny smiled at him, the glint in her eyes revealing her happiness. Offering a hand, Peredhil seated her and began serving her, his movements a mime parodying the performance of a waiter in a fine restaurant. Her laugh chimed through the clearing, blending like melody to the sounds of the wind and bird song seamlessly, and the rest of the day passed into a memory of magic… It was early the next morning they returned to the clearing, panting with pads slightly sore from a night of exploration and play, to find Elladan standing by a shimmering portal. As dawn’s first light blushed in embarrassment at having to begin a new day, and end the last, they passed back to the Pen’s Keep, standing outside her door. Looking up at Peredhil, he wore silver and black; power was in his hand and wisdom in his eyes. Her cheek was still flushed with the exhilaration of play, and the soft lanterns woke mysterious runes of light as they shimmered across her hair. Looking down at her upturned face, Peredhil smiled gently and captured her hands in his own, warm and dry. “Thank you for bidding on me, although I feel as if I should pay you for the delight of your company.” Bending his head slightly, he kissed her brow like a butterfly lighting, then released her to the day, and strode back away to his waiting responsibilities. As he passed a doorway further down the corridor, Elladan materialized like an unnoticed shadow to silently follow.

I thought it was just fine, myself. But then, I think in pictures with emotional overtones, and analogies anyway, so you were "speaking my language" in a way. Effective use of colors to bind the diverse concepts together and present them as a whole. *hugs* -P'

Ode to communication, Or Why our wonderfully wonky Wyvern stammers... stutters... I mean SPEAKS when wan and weary, Or Internally digressing dialogue described in detail and degree. Hello all you listeners out there, loaded... looting... LISTENING to this exploring wallets... exploitation... EXPLANATION of shiny... silvery... sincerity and certainty on the subject of grabbing... greed... grasping... getting golden GELD. Please hand over your wallets... open your pockets purses lockets shoes? bear with me as I take you for a sucker... for all you're worth... to feed to Melba... on an odyssey of vim, vigor, and vinegar? Vines... Wines... drunks donate with willing hands to helpful smiling shucksters! FOCUS! um... travel in the mind. Today's journey will stimulate your geld to my purse your minds to envision new and exciting ways to feed me vistas and views in the arena of Pennite Chocolate Wrestling...

How wonderful. Actually, if I were to write a great poem to give to Ayshela for all she's done of late, instead of the drivel I usually write, it would have to be like this one. Good job! -P

Loved the cat Haiku, I love most of what you do. Fog? Look for Starlight.

I took something utterly different away from Identity. And I laughed myself sick at the wry humor of Wine me, Dine me. To quote the Gwen Harrison character in the 2001 America's Sweethearts - Well, nevermind. But this reminded me of her line to her sister.

Welcome home! Quick passing huggles Glad you came back to us. -P'

Welcome! I like the theme and you captured it well. The sense of "I", for most people, remains a constant no matter how they've changed. A diary or journal helps to capture the truth that we are works in progress everchanging. On the other hand, it can capture that some are ripples in a stream, endlessly repeating the same life patterns with different circumstances. Thoughtful and thought-provoking. And punctuated! Hugs Peredhil

Peredhil bows deeply to Tanuchan and awaits her thoughts on the matter. Elrohir, discussing the complexities of Higher Vegetable Magic with Mr. Bunny, starts and looks up in surprise as his name is announced. Noting Nuncio isn't present, Guido drifts away to inform him... ~~~ Guido strolls into their shared room, and stands looking at Nuncio with a large toothy grin. Nuncio turns another page ignoring him. With unwanted patience and twinkling eyes, Guido just grins and grins. Finally Nuncio lets a long-suffering sigh erupt and lowers his book. What brilliant scheme have you done now? Youse missed da Bachel'r Auction! It was a silent Auction wasn't it? Did everyone fall asleep? Distracted by drying paint? You were SUPPOSED to be watching the Boss's back... Toothy grin. What? What?! Did Signe get the Boss or something?! Ayshela won youse... fer a low low bargain price. ... Impossibly, the toothy grin stretches. Bu-bu-but I didn't sign up!!! Suuuure... Youse and Elrohir. Bu-bu-bu-Wailed, Who'd want a date with a Giant Guinea Pig?! Katz' or some udder giant cat-person maybes? ... Looked like da Boss's writing I t'ink, in a thoughtful furry-butt-covering move. ... Guido strolls away whistling. What a beautiful glorious day it is...

Peredhil gently turns her, kisses her nose, and whispers as he hugs her, Just blush and let us love you. He takes the warm cloak he's made for her and presents it wistfully. At this rate, you'll outgrow me. I look forward to the day you fly.

Having missed a flight and being rebooked, Peredhil settles for a quick congratulations and many hugs.

First one - Cerulean I think. Have to think of the other. Back this weekend, will try to catch up on Pen stuff.

Could've sworn that Guido signed up Nuncio and Elrohir as well.

How well do you know the Polite Ancient Elder Peredhil? [Edit]As pointed out by the Quincunx, Question 10 should end with the word "Bard", making it: "... of Bard?"[/Edit]

I sit painfully, Enjoying being alive. She is beautiful. It hurts so sweetly, To see her given away. Radiant Bride's face.

Peredhil strolls by, followed by his Giant Guinea Pig Bodyguards, Guido and Nuncio. Hello and welcome! I've read your thread and it's a good start indeed. Your muse is loose, characters live and breathe. I look forward to more. And don't forget to fill out your profiles! Hugs all and sundry, and strolls on.