Lar Smith

There are so many things to love about this town- the peaceful atmosphere, the beautiful landscape, the gorgeous night sky, and so many that I can't mention them all. However, one of my most absolute favorite features has to be the community garden. I'm able to get all the fresh fruits and vegetables that I love to cook with, and it's not quite as much work as having a garden in our own yard. Right now almost everything is in full bloom, and with the end of summer approaching there's only more goodies to anticipate.

Speaking of the end of summer approaching, I thought it would be a good idea to do something special.

It only made sense to throw a pool party to properly break in our new pool. Celadra and Idhren loved the idea, and Celadra especially because she'll be graduating soon. It will be a good chance for her to spend time with her friends and family before she takes that leap into the adult world.

We had a good turn out. All my children came, of course. Then there was Minai's husband, Seth, as well as Thrin's wife, Laura. Those who also came were my friends, Celadra's friends, and Kendrick. About half of who showed up didn't even go near the pool, but I didn't mind all that much. A party is a medium for enjoyment. If some people get more enjoyment out of standing and talking instead of swimming then that's perfectly fine with me.

Ettelendil didn't seem to share my same feelings on the matter. He was determined to get everyone wet whether they wanted to be or not. Mostly he kept jumping off the diving board to see just how big of a splash he could make. He and Fiendir even had a competition between the two of them. With those two going off that board constantly right after the other, I began to worry that there wouldn't be any water left in the pool before too long.

Those of us who were watching were divided on who won the little competition. Ette's splashes tended to be wider while Fiendir's were higher, so it was hard to pick a side. The two of them simply decided not to pick a winner at all, and jumped into together to make one big last explosion of water. I had been trying to dry off by that point, but I misjudged how close I was to the pool. At least there was a strong sun out to help me start drying again.

I wasn't the only one who made good use of the sun though. I woke up the next morning to find Celadra sporting quite the tan. It wasn't hard to tell that she certainly enjoyed the party if she managed to stay out so long that her skin would darken so drastically in such a short amount of time. I guess it also helped that yesterday was one of the hottest days we've had all year. The difference was even more stunning when Celadra played with Elwen. Normally they have the exact same skin tone.

I waited a bit longer than I usually have to get an ultrasound for my growing baby. I was debating on whether or not I really need to know the gender ahead of time. It's not as if I need to plan ahead anymore when it comes to buying things for a boy or for a girl. I have more things for each gender than I know what to do with. I thought it would also make it a bit more exciting to be surprised when the baby is born. However, I couldn't keep my curiosity at bay. I simply had to know. I fear I have become too spoiled. It turns out I will be having another boy. Perhaps the nice boy-girl-boy-girl cycle I've always wanted is finally happening. Although, by saying that now I've probably jinxed myself.

Celadra and Idhren's birthdays ended up on the same date, and that date was the very last day of summer. I found it rather appropriate. The timing symbolizes Celadra's transition into adulthood as well as Idhren's milestone of becoming an adolescent. 

Celadra decided to get a job teaching at the local school. She then came up to me and told me being a teacher wasn't her main goal in life. What she wants to do more than anything else is to find that unicorn she saw again. She hopes that maybe she can make friends with it, and even have it trust her enough so that she can adopt it and have them live together. I let her know that was quite the hard dream to strive for. I can't recall hearing of any unicorn letting a human or elf adopt them even back when there was still a lot of trust between the unicorns and other races. I wished my daughter luck regardless of the almost insurmountable challenges that she will face.

There was one more birthday to celebrate. While Celadra and Idhren's birthdays marked the end of summer, Elwen's birthday marked the beginning of autumn. She's much more cheerful and kind now that she's older, so that is something I am very thankful for. I knew I was worrying too much about her becoming like Lazarus.

I know that my new son will arrive any day, but for the moment I only have two children in the house. It was my intention to slow down my rate of child-bearing, but I see I have taken on the other extreme and have slowed down too much. I enjoy the quality time with Idhren and Elwen, and the time to do what I want to do without interruption, but I can't be so lackadaisical about the task anymore. I need to pick the pace up just a bit more to find a happy medium.

Honestly, I think I dropped my pace so much because I was expecting some big event to occur. More multiples, encountering some financial troubles, having to take someone else in, a surprise visit from Eloril, or anything else really. I suppose Aurora Skies really is such a calm place that I don't have to worry so much about those kind of things happening all that often.

My son arrived just the day after my realization came. Cold rain had just begun to pour down almost as soon as he was born. Perhaps little Meldiron didn't like the noise of the storm for he was very fussy for his first couple hours. He did calm down after that. Now I only have to figure out when the perfect timing is for me to become pregnant once more.

I made plans with Idhren for him to babysit Elwen and Meldiron one day so that I could use the time to visit Thrin in his town. His twins had had their birthday, and I wanted to see how my grandchildren were doing. Thrin's passed down his darker skin tone to Khalilah and Thaddeus. Khalilah takes after her mom, and I suppose after me too, with her fair hair. She also has Laura's pretty blue eyes. Thaddeus, on the other hand, looks more like Ralph than even Thrin does. I swear he's almost an exact copy of his grandfather. 

Thrin, Laura, Khalilah, and Thaddeus were all doing quite well. Thrin says now that he has twins of his own he has no idea how I managed to look after him and his siblings without going crazy. He can barely keep up with them, and he has Laura around to help him out. I did it all by myself. I laughed and said some days it's a mystery to even me on how things never fell into complete chaos. I guess after so many years keeping the peace is a strength I've acquired. Then I pointed out to Thrin that he looked truly happy. He agreed. Thrin's quite content with the way things have turned out. He and Riviel are getting along just fine now as well.

After I began to feel too sedentary, I thought it was a great idea to unpack the training dummy I bought in China. It's been quite some time since I've used it. Unfortunately, my training is getting harder. The material is getting harder obviously, and it doesn't help that I have no teacher to guide me in the right direction. I have somehow managed though to get to the next level and earn the right to wear a green belt. All my practicing is done in my bedroom. It's more a matter of convenience than practicality. I need to be close to Meldiron to care for him, and I can't accomplish that properly if I have to be constantly running in and out of the room.

Although hopefully my training might be getting easier seeing that Meldiron has had his birthday. I knew that he would have fair hair consider both Irv and I have fair hair, but I was at least expecting my son to get Irv's shade. Instead, I have yet another child with my hair color, my green eyes, and the elven ears. Not only is that three children in the house who are so similar to me, but that's three children in a row. That's really some luck!

I was taking a walk in the park with Meldiron, keeping my eyes open for potential fathers, when one particular man came running up to us. He was very peculiar as well. The very first thing I noticed about him was his eyes. They are blue, but when he moved and the light struck them differently they took on a purple hue. I found this man attractive, but was wary of the way he approached me.

I was considerably more wary as soon as he opened his mouth. Without any sort of introduction, he quickly asked for my name. When I asked why, he only asked me for it again. Ellothiel, I told him hesitantly. As he pondered my name, I demanded his. Lar Smith was the name he gave me. Lar Smith, really? I pointed out that Lar doesn't sound anything like a proper name. That's what he's called, he insisted. Well, alright then, I sighed. I asked him what he wanted. The question barely left my mouth before he asked to know why I was here. I was very off put by his demanding, almost forceful, questioning.

I asked if he was a member of some church, and if he was trying to pull me into some sort of religious conversation. No no, he said, by asking why was I here he wanted to know what an elf was doing on the human side of the wall. That took me by surprise. Mr. Smith then wondered why I also brought my son with me on such a long trip. I explained that Meldiron was born here- that his father is human. Mr. Smith was absolutely dumbfounded by this information. I've rarely seen a person so shocked. With each passing second my heart told me I needed to back away from this man.

However, he asked me why again. I questioned what business it was of his. None, but he has to know, was Mr. Smith's response.

I let him know that's he's not going to know. I didn't approve of his attitude and interrogation. My son and I were going home. We began to leave, but Mr. Smith followed after us after a moment of hesitation. It was just as I was about to look around to see who might help me get rid of this troublesome man when Mr. Smith finally apologized. He explained that he used to live near the wall. It was always his biggest dream to get to meet with the elves and see our side and culture, but no elf ever came through the door nor was there ever even the slightest chance he would be allowed through himself. Now he's passing through this town and he just happens to stumble across someone he's always wanted to meet? Mr. Smith admitted that he is too curious for his own good.

I could tell he was now being sincere, although there was still something about the way he spoke that made me wonder if he was entirely truthful in his words. I relented and agreed to tell him the truth if he promised not to go blabbering about it to everyone he met. With his promise, went went over to one of the nearby benches.

I let Meldiron play at our feet so I wouldn't be struggling to hold him while I talked. Similarly to how I told Charlie, Eiji, and Lewis, I started at the beginning for Mr. Smith. I then worked my way from the bequeathing of the task through some of the hardships I've faced up until the present time. I watched Meldiron the entire time I spoke. When I finally did look over at Mr. Smith, I found that his expression was so serious. There was an unexpected deep sympathy and understanding in his eyes that actually took away my breath for just a moment. He must have experienced something in his life that resonated with some particular story or feeling I expressed to him.

Needless to say, the mood had become rather heavy. I took a chance, and jokingly asked if he would like to help me with the task and be a participant in such a momentous undertaking. Mr. Smith laughed and brightened up. Helping me out in that particular manner was something he definitely could not do.

I figured, I answered with a smile......