Enchantment of Sorrow

Chapter 03

You awoke to the sound of a harp being played in the distance. A tenor voice accompanied it with words you didn't understand. For a moment you did not remember where you were, or for that matter, what happened the night before. You found yourself confused for those long seconds, before your eyes came to rest on the tapestry above the fire place. Everything came flooding back to you in that moment.

You took a deep breath, smelling that unique smell of incense cedar and spices that floated about the king. You sat up quickly and looked about yourself. You felt ravenous. As the beautiful, haunting music still danced about you on the wind, you seen the most delicious bowl of fruit you had ever seen on the table. Beside it a golden goblet beckoned with a pitcher of what looked like the wine from the night before.

You gathered the robe about yourself and went to the table, plucking the reddest, ripest strawberry you had ever seen from the bowl. As soon as you bit into it you felt as if you had never eaten a strawberry before, so sweet yet tart was it's juice that it seemed unnatural. You found yourself taking several more from the bowl before looking at a rather odd looking apple. Part white, part red, you tasted it on both sides and almost moaned in delight at the sweetness.

You heard the song on the wind more pronounced than before and after pouring and taking a drink of the wine, you pulled the garnet colored garment tightly about you and went to investigate. Out the heavy wooden door and down the hall to a room to the right it seemed to be coming from.

When you came upon the room you seen to your surprise one of the elves that had urged you on the bridge standing just in the doorway. He turned to look at you when he felt your presence. When the vivid blue eyes met yours you seen tears in them.

He looked back inside the room golden hair swishing behind him as you approached his side.

"He has not touched that harp in an Age, nor sand in centuries." he whispered.

You looked up at the tall elf and seen him wipe away the tears hastily. You stared at him for a long moment in wonder, then peered around him. Bathed in almost blinding candlelight and moonlight from the windows sat the Elvenking, harp leaned against him and his hands expertly stroking and plucking the strings in tune to his melody. His eyes were closed lost in the words, and his beautiful face framed in waterfall of moonlit hair.

"It is hard for me to not feel that you have some cause in this. If so, I offer my blessings to you most wholeheartedly."

He brought his hand to his chest and outstretched the other, then took his leave. The king played on for several minutes, then coming to the end of his song, sighed and pushed the harp to it's standing position. He looked up and a sweet, endearing smile came to his face.

"Y/N! You are finally awake!" he cried out joyously.

You stepped back at the suddenness of it. He stood, watched you for a moment, seeing that your face wasn't contorted in fear, he crossed the room to you, and put his hands on your shoulders. You peered up at him wide-eyed. He looked like an angel. So beautiful and ethereal with his moonlight hair, perfect mouth, lovely face, and the eyes - intense and piercing to the soul, you almost mused that he was perhaps. After all, what kind of creatures were elves really anyway?

"Yes, your majesty." You said quietly letting a nervous smile come to your face.

He took your hand then and pulled you along with him to a bench beside the harp he had been playing. "Did you eat the fruit I had sent to you, or would you like me to send for something now?"

You raised your eyebrow at him. This was a vastly different creature than the intimidating dragon of a being you had witnessed the night before. You swore him to be mad with some of his eccentric mannerisms. You shook off your thoughts. You did not know him truly... He was not even human? How would you know how a creature of his caliber would behave?