Shawn Daysleeper (with Carleen Luckstone and Lihan Taifun)
Elenwe approaches the cooking preparation building, carrying a large fish she has pulled from the harbor. She enters, looking about at the deserted room. Olwe needs healing foods, and, although she never cooked much she has volunteered to prepare a soup for her king.
Plopping the fish down on a table, Elenwe removes her cloak and sword. She looks for the proper knife to prepare the fish for cooking. At the villages she wandered in for years, she often made a living by helping to clean fish taken from the water. "Well, at least this much i know how to do," she says to herself.
Estelin walks thru the corridors of the castle with his sister Apakenwe. He walks past an open doorway, filled with aromas of spices, and notices a teleri within. Apakenwe slows down to look in the doorway. A Teleri woman is struggling with a large fish at the table int he center of the room. Estelin turns to his sister, whispers, "Here is another of the Teleri."
While gutting the fish, Elenwe piles the innards on the table. She cuts the fish into pieces. Unsure of how to cook the fish, she looks about the room. She spies a bowl.
Apakenwe whispers back. "Preparing physical food, I think. Food, aren't we supposed to be eating food?"
Estelin pauses for a moment before whispering back. "Yes, I remember Lord Ulmo saying something about that."
There is a fire burning, and Elenwe puts the bowl amongst the wood. She dumps the fish into the bowl.
Apakenwe continues to whisper. "Maybe we should go get some of this food to eat."
"Food, yes," Estelin responds.
Elenwe turns to go look for vegetables in the kitchen garden. Estelin enters the doorway, as the Teleri turns. Elenwe sees two strangers standing outside the open door, watching her. Apakenwe walks in and says cheerfully, "You are making food!"
Bowing her head, Elenwe says, "Greetings my lord and my lady. Yes, I am preparing soup for King Olwe."
"Greetings, to you, my lady." Estelin looks around the kitchen, wonder in his eyes. Apakenwe exclaims "Oh, that is wonderful!"
Elenwe smells something burning. She rushes to the bowl and, grabbling a stick, moves the fish around. She laughs. "I don't know how wonderful it will be. I have little experience in cooking. Can you cook?" This question is directed at the female of the pair.
Estelin looks at his sister with a convincing look. Apakenwe stamers "I ... uh ... um ... of course!" She finishes brightly.
Elenwe responds, "Oh, good. We need noodles, and vegetables from the garden. Can you gather those while I try not to burn the fish?" Looking at the male elf, she asks, "Could you locate a bucket and fetch water?"
Apakenwe acknowledges. "Certainly. Estelin, shall we gather noodles from the garden? Oh, you have another job. Go ahead."
Estelin smiles. "Yes, I will help you while I find this... bucket"
Elenwe indicates a bucket in the corner and says,"There's one. The well is off the courtyard."
Apakenwe heads out searching for the garden. She wanders around a bit, and finds a small door to the outdoors. The garden is neglected and overgrown, but still recognizable as a garden.
"Oh" Estelin says as he reaches for the bucket and he curls his fingers slowly around the handle as he concentrates on picking it up, then follows his sister outside, looking for the well. Elenwe continues poking the fish with the stick. "How do they tell when fish is finished cooking?" She wonders.
Apakenwe pushes listlessly at the leaves and vines. "Oh, there you are Estelin. Do you have any idea what a 'vegetable' looks like? There are a lot of leaves here, and some stringy things that might be noodles."
Estelin shrugs his shoulders. "I am afraid you will have to ask Yavanna."
Apakenwe grumps, "I don't have time to go back and ask Yavanna."
Pulliing at the stringy foilage, her brother answers, "Yes, these are different: they may be noodles?" Estelin looks at his sister. "Well, let's take these to the lady. Maybe she can cook food with them."
Apakenwe nods. "Arobably." Apakenwe tugs on the yellow stalks, which seem firmly attached to the earth. Estelin helps his sister pull on the plant.
A few tear off in her hand. With much tugging, Apakenwe manages to collect an entire handful of the yellow stringy things. Then she spies a large round orange thing beneath the leaves.
Estelin smiles. "I will find the water now."
Apakenwe says, '"Alright, best you do that." The orange ball is about as big as her head, and attached to a leafy stalk. Surely this is a vegetable! Estelin locates the well, but stares for a moment. He sees a crank and pulls at it.
Back in the "cooking building," otherwise known as the kitchens, Elenwe glances at the door, wondering when her fellow cooks are returning. She picks up a cloth from the floor and tries to lift the bowl from the fire. "Ouch!!"" Elenwe screams as the hot bowl quickly burns her fingers. The bowl clatters to the floor, spilling the fish. Elenwe uses the cloth to sweep the burnt fish back into the bowl. She tries to avoid the straw and bits of wood on the floor.
Mean while, outside, Apakenwe places a hand on either side of the ball, and pulls. The vine is strong, and she overbalances, falling on her backside in the garden dirt. Estelin pulls on the crank and it does not seem to work, so he starts kicking at it. His sister scrambles to her knees, resolutely trying again, putting her hands on the ball, and pulling. This time, the vine comes loose. Sucess! Estelin sees a wheel in the crank, and thinks it could be moved. He turns the crank, and the water flows out "Yes!" he says aloud, placing the bucket in the water to fill it.
"I need a pot for the soup," Elewene, staring about at the unfamiliar implements. "This should suffice." She pulls a cauldron off a shelf, it's weight causing it to plummet to the floor. Elenwe drags the cauldron to the fire. She straightens and brushes her hair away from her face. "Water, the soup must have water. What could be taking them so long?" she says out loud.
Still holding the orange ball in two hands, Apakenwe looks around. Oh no, where are the noodles? The carefully harvested noodles must have fallen while she was harvesting the vegetable!
Estelin comes back into the garden, carrying the water. He sees his sister covered in dirt. He wipes the sweat off his brow and tries to straighten his rragged hair. "Sister" he says.
The orange vegetable is surprisingly heavy. Still carrying it in two hands, Apakenwe retraces her steps to the kitchen, trailing mud and leaves from the vine. "Look, I found a vegetable! The cook will be so pleased!"
Estelin follows his sister back into the kitchen. Sets the pail down.
He then wipes more sweat off his brow. Apakenwe plops the vegetable on the work table with a loud thud. Estelin wipes dirt off his sister's clothes.
Elenwe watches as the two elves reenter the kitchen. "Oh, you are here."
"I'm sorry, I left the noodles outside. I will go get them." Apakenwe says.
Elenwe looks at the gourd on the table. "Oh yes, we will need them." Apakenwe smiles encouragingly, heads back to the garden, and tugs more strings growing out of the ground.
"Thank you for the water." Elenwe empties the bucket into the cauldron.
Estelin smiles as his sister leaves, then turns to the teleri lady before him. "Is there anything else we need?"
Elenwe asks, "Can you clean and cut this vegetable for the soup?" Apakenwe returns proudly, and dumps the pile across the table.
"Sure," Estelin says with an air of pride, then turns to the big orange vegetable. Apakenwe says to her brother "Can you, Estelin? I ... think I need to change my raiment."
Elenwe gazes at the weeds. "Are you sure those are noodles?"
Estelin nods. "Yes, Apakenwe, I will continue to help cook."
"Thank you." And Apakenwe skips out of the room, blithely ignoring the possibility that she collected the wrong noodles.
Estelin turns the vegetable on the table, trying to look like he knows what he is doing. The fish and weeds are added to the pot. Elenwe pushes and pulls it into the fire. Estelin asks, "How ummm... how do I cut this?"
"Oh, let me see." Elenwe comes alongside the elf. "Hmm, maybe my sword would work. It's so big." Elenwe retrieves her sword and unsheathes it. Apakenwe returns with fresh clothes. "Vanima, my sword, will cut cleanly," she assures the two.
Apakenwe nods. "Oh yes, of course!" Estelin, too, nods.
Elenwe says, "Please, stand aside." Estelin backs away from the table.
Apakenwe backs up a little. Raising Vanima, Elenwe brings the sword down with a thwack onto the gourd. She succeeds in slicing off a portion of the gourd.
"Oh, my apologies!" Elenwe cries as bits of the pulp fly onto the surprised duo. Estelin turns to his sister, and wipes a bit of pulp off his already sweaty robes. Apakenwe attempts to brush off the pulp, smudging it in with the dirt on her dress.
Elenwe says, "Let me try again. Perhaps it is best that you move farther away."
Estelin remarks, "This cooking... seems quite dangerous." Taking no chances, Apakenwe backs up against the far wall. Elenwe raises the sword again and smiles with satisfaction as the gourd is sliced nearly in two.
Estelin asks, "So we put these in the pot with the noodles and fish?"
Apakenwe nods. "Yes. Do you think we should wash it first?" She eyes the bucket of water.
Elenwe suggests, "I think putting it into the pot will wash it."
Apakenwe nods. "Oh, yes, of course."
Estelin nods approvingly and places the dirty vegetable in the caldron while
Estelin asks, "So what do we do now?"
Elenwe brushes her hands off and smiles at the two. Apakenwe scoops up the "noodles" from the table, and dumps them into the cauldron as well.
"Oh, thank you. I had forgotten the noodles. I think we leave it cooking for a day or so. I an unsure of the length of time. There is a fire here, so it should be alright." Apakenwe tries to remember. It seems like the Vanyar spend days cooking before a festival, so this is probably the right way. Elenwe continues chatting, "Thank you. Ummm, I do not believe I have your names."
Estelin nods and smiles. "I am Estelin, and a Teleri musician."
"And I am Apakenwë, his sister."We have been gone a while. We just returned."
Estelin smiles. "it is great to meet you, mi'lady."
"And I am Elenwe, a teleri swordmaiden. I have not seen you before. I have only come to Alqualonde recently. I bid you welcome back to our fair land. There are few Teleri moving about, and I am glad for company. Our king is quite ill, and there are few of us to care for him properly." She moves toward the door. "Have you been to the king's chambers?" Elenwe leads the pair down the corridor and through the palace to the king's chambers.
> Next
Plopping the fish down on a table, Elenwe removes her cloak and sword. She looks for the proper knife to prepare the fish for cooking. At the villages she wandered in for years, she often made a living by helping to clean fish taken from the water. "Well, at least this much i know how to do," she says to herself.
Estelin walks thru the corridors of the castle with his sister Apakenwe. He walks past an open doorway, filled with aromas of spices, and notices a teleri within. Apakenwe slows down to look in the doorway. A Teleri woman is struggling with a large fish at the table int he center of the room. Estelin turns to his sister, whispers, "Here is another of the Teleri."
While gutting the fish, Elenwe piles the innards on the table. She cuts the fish into pieces. Unsure of how to cook the fish, she looks about the room. She spies a bowl.
Apakenwe whispers back. "Preparing physical food, I think. Food, aren't we supposed to be eating food?"
Estelin pauses for a moment before whispering back. "Yes, I remember Lord Ulmo saying something about that."
There is a fire burning, and Elenwe puts the bowl amongst the wood. She dumps the fish into the bowl.
Apakenwe continues to whisper. "Maybe we should go get some of this food to eat."
"Food, yes," Estelin responds.
Elenwe turns to go look for vegetables in the kitchen garden. Estelin enters the doorway, as the Teleri turns. Elenwe sees two strangers standing outside the open door, watching her. Apakenwe walks in and says cheerfully, "You are making food!"
Bowing her head, Elenwe says, "Greetings my lord and my lady. Yes, I am preparing soup for King Olwe."
"Greetings, to you, my lady." Estelin looks around the kitchen, wonder in his eyes. Apakenwe exclaims "Oh, that is wonderful!"
Elenwe smells something burning. She rushes to the bowl and, grabbling a stick, moves the fish around. She laughs. "I don't know how wonderful it will be. I have little experience in cooking. Can you cook?" This question is directed at the female of the pair.
Estelin looks at his sister with a convincing look. Apakenwe stamers "I ... uh ... um ... of course!" She finishes brightly.
Elenwe responds, "Oh, good. We need noodles, and vegetables from the garden. Can you gather those while I try not to burn the fish?" Looking at the male elf, she asks, "Could you locate a bucket and fetch water?"
Apakenwe acknowledges. "Certainly. Estelin, shall we gather noodles from the garden? Oh, you have another job. Go ahead."
Estelin smiles. "Yes, I will help you while I find this... bucket"
Elenwe indicates a bucket in the corner and says,"There's one. The well is off the courtyard."
Apakenwe heads out searching for the garden. She wanders around a bit, and finds a small door to the outdoors. The garden is neglected and overgrown, but still recognizable as a garden.
"Oh" Estelin says as he reaches for the bucket and he curls his fingers slowly around the handle as he concentrates on picking it up, then follows his sister outside, looking for the well. Elenwe continues poking the fish with the stick. "How do they tell when fish is finished cooking?" She wonders.
Apakenwe pushes listlessly at the leaves and vines. "Oh, there you are Estelin. Do you have any idea what a 'vegetable' looks like? There are a lot of leaves here, and some stringy things that might be noodles."
Estelin shrugs his shoulders. "I am afraid you will have to ask Yavanna."
Apakenwe grumps, "I don't have time to go back and ask Yavanna."
Pulliing at the stringy foilage, her brother answers, "Yes, these are different: they may be noodles?" Estelin looks at his sister. "Well, let's take these to the lady. Maybe she can cook food with them."
Apakenwe nods. "Arobably." Apakenwe tugs on the yellow stalks, which seem firmly attached to the earth. Estelin helps his sister pull on the plant.
A few tear off in her hand. With much tugging, Apakenwe manages to collect an entire handful of the yellow stringy things. Then she spies a large round orange thing beneath the leaves.
Estelin smiles. "I will find the water now."
Apakenwe says, '"Alright, best you do that." The orange ball is about as big as her head, and attached to a leafy stalk. Surely this is a vegetable! Estelin locates the well, but stares for a moment. He sees a crank and pulls at it.
Back in the "cooking building," otherwise known as the kitchens, Elenwe glances at the door, wondering when her fellow cooks are returning. She picks up a cloth from the floor and tries to lift the bowl from the fire. "Ouch!!"" Elenwe screams as the hot bowl quickly burns her fingers. The bowl clatters to the floor, spilling the fish. Elenwe uses the cloth to sweep the burnt fish back into the bowl. She tries to avoid the straw and bits of wood on the floor.
Mean while, outside, Apakenwe places a hand on either side of the ball, and pulls. The vine is strong, and she overbalances, falling on her backside in the garden dirt. Estelin pulls on the crank and it does not seem to work, so he starts kicking at it. His sister scrambles to her knees, resolutely trying again, putting her hands on the ball, and pulling. This time, the vine comes loose. Sucess! Estelin sees a wheel in the crank, and thinks it could be moved. He turns the crank, and the water flows out "Yes!" he says aloud, placing the bucket in the water to fill it.
"I need a pot for the soup," Elewene, staring about at the unfamiliar implements. "This should suffice." She pulls a cauldron off a shelf, it's weight causing it to plummet to the floor. Elenwe drags the cauldron to the fire. She straightens and brushes her hair away from her face. "Water, the soup must have water. What could be taking them so long?" she says out loud.
Still holding the orange ball in two hands, Apakenwe looks around. Oh no, where are the noodles? The carefully harvested noodles must have fallen while she was harvesting the vegetable!
Estelin comes back into the garden, carrying the water. He sees his sister covered in dirt. He wipes the sweat off his brow and tries to straighten his rragged hair. "Sister" he says.
The orange vegetable is surprisingly heavy. Still carrying it in two hands, Apakenwe retraces her steps to the kitchen, trailing mud and leaves from the vine. "Look, I found a vegetable! The cook will be so pleased!"
Estelin follows his sister back into the kitchen. Sets the pail down.
He then wipes more sweat off his brow. Apakenwe plops the vegetable on the work table with a loud thud. Estelin wipes dirt off his sister's clothes.
Elenwe watches as the two elves reenter the kitchen. "Oh, you are here."
"I'm sorry, I left the noodles outside. I will go get them." Apakenwe says.
Elenwe looks at the gourd on the table. "Oh yes, we will need them." Apakenwe smiles encouragingly, heads back to the garden, and tugs more strings growing out of the ground.
"Thank you for the water." Elenwe empties the bucket into the cauldron.
Estelin smiles as his sister leaves, then turns to the teleri lady before him. "Is there anything else we need?"
Elenwe asks, "Can you clean and cut this vegetable for the soup?" Apakenwe returns proudly, and dumps the pile across the table.
"Sure," Estelin says with an air of pride, then turns to the big orange vegetable. Apakenwe says to her brother "Can you, Estelin? I ... think I need to change my raiment."
Elenwe gazes at the weeds. "Are you sure those are noodles?"
Estelin nods. "Yes, Apakenwe, I will continue to help cook."
"Thank you." And Apakenwe skips out of the room, blithely ignoring the possibility that she collected the wrong noodles.
Estelin turns the vegetable on the table, trying to look like he knows what he is doing. The fish and weeds are added to the pot. Elenwe pushes and pulls it into the fire. Estelin asks, "How ummm... how do I cut this?"
"Oh, let me see." Elenwe comes alongside the elf. "Hmm, maybe my sword would work. It's so big." Elenwe retrieves her sword and unsheathes it. Apakenwe returns with fresh clothes. "Vanima, my sword, will cut cleanly," she assures the two.
Apakenwe nods. "Oh yes, of course!" Estelin, too, nods.
Elenwe says, "Please, stand aside." Estelin backs away from the table.
Apakenwe backs up a little. Raising Vanima, Elenwe brings the sword down with a thwack onto the gourd. She succeeds in slicing off a portion of the gourd.
"Oh, my apologies!" Elenwe cries as bits of the pulp fly onto the surprised duo. Estelin turns to his sister, and wipes a bit of pulp off his already sweaty robes. Apakenwe attempts to brush off the pulp, smudging it in with the dirt on her dress.
Elenwe says, "Let me try again. Perhaps it is best that you move farther away."
Estelin remarks, "This cooking... seems quite dangerous." Taking no chances, Apakenwe backs up against the far wall. Elenwe raises the sword again and smiles with satisfaction as the gourd is sliced nearly in two.
Estelin asks, "So we put these in the pot with the noodles and fish?"
Apakenwe nods. "Yes. Do you think we should wash it first?" She eyes the bucket of water.
Elenwe suggests, "I think putting it into the pot will wash it."
Apakenwe nods. "Oh, yes, of course."
Estelin nods approvingly and places the dirty vegetable in the caldron while
Estelin asks, "So what do we do now?"
Elenwe brushes her hands off and smiles at the two. Apakenwe scoops up the "noodles" from the table, and dumps them into the cauldron as well.
"Oh, thank you. I had forgotten the noodles. I think we leave it cooking for a day or so. I an unsure of the length of time. There is a fire here, so it should be alright." Apakenwe tries to remember. It seems like the Vanyar spend days cooking before a festival, so this is probably the right way. Elenwe continues chatting, "Thank you. Ummm, I do not believe I have your names."
Estelin nods and smiles. "I am Estelin, and a Teleri musician."
"And I am Apakenwë, his sister."We have been gone a while. We just returned."
Estelin smiles. "it is great to meet you, mi'lady."
"And I am Elenwe, a teleri swordmaiden. I have not seen you before. I have only come to Alqualonde recently. I bid you welcome back to our fair land. There are few Teleri moving about, and I am glad for company. Our king is quite ill, and there are few of us to care for him properly." She moves toward the door. "Have you been to the king's chambers?" Elenwe leads the pair down the corridor and through the palace to the king's chambers.
> Next