easily. The anger fueled him to fulfill his curiosity about Neelan. He could no longer bite his tongue and needed to know more—especially considering the information she knew about Thomas.
“I want to know, Neelan,” Kale shifted to face her as he shoved a handful of meat into his mouth, “Rhy roo oo khoo oo rhyd urr oo relf?”
She raised a brown eyebrow in annoyance. “Disgusting. Chew your food—you really are just like a wild animal.”
After swallowing, he once again questioned Neelan. “Why do you choose to hide your true self?”
She heavily sighed, as if in self-debate on whether or not to reveal her story to them. “I suppose I could tell you. But I swear, if you tell another soul...” She hugged her bow warningly.
“Yeah, we get it already.” Kale rolled his eyes.
“My father is a very proud man who holds our racial traits as elves above all others. He is incredibly narrow-minded to view and accept the world outside of our own. They only see our culture and beliefs as being right.” She stared solemnly into the fire as if her mind was drifting back in time. “I can still remember my first true friend. I was playing just outside of our kingdom—something not fully accepted at the time, but not forbidden. I clearly remember skipping stones across a beautiful pond I had come across. The day was perfect and the weather felt amazing. Then, I saw her. She was a young, human girl who seemed in appearance to be the same age as myself. Although, of course, I was much older. Elves age much slower than a human and I still looked as though I was a ten-year-old child.” Neelan tugged down upon her brown hat.
“Well, aside from my ears, and eyes. But the girl, her name was Gloria, never once seemed to care. She behaved as though she hadn’t even noticed our differences. To her, we were both young girls who simply wanted to enjoy each other’s company and play. Each day after my parents left, I would sneak away from Tyrione to meet Gloria. Then,” Neelan looked to the ground, “one day while we were weaving crowns out of bright pink flowers we had found, my father appeared. He had somehow found me and his eyes were filled with anger. I...I just didn’t understand. He looked to Gloria and told her she was born of filthy blood and to never come near me again. After that day, I was forbidden to leave the kingdom ever again.” She buried her face into her hands, forcing back tears as she continued with her story. “I never saw Gloria again.”
Neelan went on to explain that after the incident, her father did all in his power to shelter her from the outside world and to keep her from the only true friend she ever had. On her ninety-sixth birthday—equivalent to her sixteenth—her father announced she was to fulfill her life as a priestess, devoting her remaining years to the temple. The thought alone made her sick to her stomach.
The kingdom where she had lived was breathtaking, with masterfully constructed buildings and sparkling streams. Protected by a barrier of combined magic and defense that ensured a safe environment for them, they lived without fear of outside conflicts. Yet, despite everything Tyrione had to offer, she longed to have the freedom to choose where she wanted to go and who she would befriend. The world was too vast to remain within the walls of only one kingdom.
When she fought to compromise or reason with her father, he would punish her in an attempt to cleanse her mind of such desires. He locked her within a tiny, dark room beneath the temple, for days at a time. Neelan’s mother, who remained fearful of her husband’s rage, would stand back, doing nothing to defend her daughter against his cruelty. In time, Neelan grew to detest her father and lost all respect for the mother she still dearly loved. After two years of being a slave to her father and the temple, she knew it was time to make a stand if she ever intended to truly live her own life.
On the day of her one hundred
“I want to know, Neelan,” Kale shifted to face her as he shoved a handful of meat into his mouth, “Rhy roo oo khoo oo rhyd urr oo relf?”
She raised a brown eyebrow in annoyance. “Disgusting. Chew your food—you really are just like a wild animal.”
After swallowing, he once again questioned Neelan. “Why do you choose to hide your true self?”
She heavily sighed, as if in self-debate on whether or not to reveal her story to them. “I suppose I could tell you. But I swear, if you tell another soul...” She hugged her bow warningly.
“Yeah, we get it already.” Kale rolled his eyes.
“My father is a very proud man who holds our racial traits as elves above all others. He is incredibly narrow-minded to view and accept the world outside of our own. They only see our culture and beliefs as being right.” She stared solemnly into the fire as if her mind was drifting back in time. “I can still remember my first true friend. I was playing just outside of our kingdom—something not fully accepted at the time, but not forbidden. I clearly remember skipping stones across a beautiful pond I had come across. The day was perfect and the weather felt amazing. Then, I saw her. She was a young, human girl who seemed in appearance to be the same age as myself. Although, of course, I was much older. Elves age much slower than a human and I still looked as though I was a ten-year-old child.” Neelan tugged down upon her brown hat.
“Well, aside from my ears, and eyes. But the girl, her name was Gloria, never once seemed to care. She behaved as though she hadn’t even noticed our differences. To her, we were both young girls who simply wanted to enjoy each other’s company and play. Each day after my parents left, I would sneak away from Tyrione to meet Gloria. Then,” Neelan looked to the ground, “one day while we were weaving crowns out of bright pink flowers we had found, my father appeared. He had somehow found me and his eyes were filled with anger. I...I just didn’t understand. He looked to Gloria and told her she was born of filthy blood and to never come near me again. After that day, I was forbidden to leave the kingdom ever again.” She buried her face into her hands, forcing back tears as she continued with her story. “I never saw Gloria again.”
Neelan went on to explain that after the incident, her father did all in his power to shelter her from the outside world and to keep her from the only true friend she ever had. On her ninety-sixth birthday—equivalent to her sixteenth—her father announced she was to fulfill her life as a priestess, devoting her remaining years to the temple. The thought alone made her sick to her stomach.
The kingdom where she had lived was breathtaking, with masterfully constructed buildings and sparkling streams. Protected by a barrier of combined magic and defense that ensured a safe environment for them, they lived without fear of outside conflicts. Yet, despite everything Tyrione had to offer, she longed to have the freedom to choose where she wanted to go and who she would befriend. The world was too vast to remain within the walls of only one kingdom.
When she fought to compromise or reason with her father, he would punish her in an attempt to cleanse her mind of such desires. He locked her within a tiny, dark room beneath the temple, for days at a time. Neelan’s mother, who remained fearful of her husband’s rage, would stand back, doing nothing to defend her daughter against his cruelty. In time, Neelan grew to detest her father and lost all respect for the mother she still dearly loved. After two years of being a slave to her father and the temple, she knew it was time to make a stand if she ever intended to truly live her own life.
On the day of her one hundred
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