"Wait, where are we going?" Teldryn glanced at Naia and Sondis for a moment before getting up to follow Lendri.
"I have a place of my own. Hopefully it hasn't been turned into a den by some jaguar or boar."
Teldryn waited until the clearing where they'd talked was hidden by a curve in the road before speaking.
"Why didn't you tell them the whole truth?"
Lendri rounded on him so quick Teldryn almost ran into him. "What in Oblivion were you thinking feeling me up at a time like that, in front of my parents, of all people?"
"I was trying to take your hand! I just reached too far in the dark."
"Oh, okay then, good. Nevermind." He kept walking.
"Anyway, I was asking why you didn't tell the truth."
"Well, what difference does it make, the reason? My soul is still sold no matter why I did it."
"So to your mind, you're no different from some crazed wizard who sold his soul for arcane knowledge, or some power hungry lord who sold his soul for power."
"I didn't say that."
"By saying that it makes no difference because the end result is the same, you implied--"
"Alright, so it was implied. I'm really not in the mood to argue logic or whatever it is that you're arguing right now."
"Don't get angry. I just want to understand why you only gave them half of the truth."
Lendri didn't answer. After a quarter of an hour they arrived at a small stone building with a deep river flowing by outside.
"Is this where you lived?"
"Yes. Looks like it's still empty."
There was a leather flap in front of the door, like a tent entrance. Inside a few leaves had blown in from the window, which had no pane. There were two and a half rooms, the third being partly crumbled and without a roof. One wall had collapsed and the stream could be seen. Bone chimes were strung in the window and some furs were strewn before the small, cold hearth. A few unusual rocks sat on the mantel piece, and the walls had been half painted with stylized vines and animals. They leaned their traveling gear against the wall and lay on the furs in the moonlight. Outside the river flowed, quiet and musical.
"You know why I don't tell them? This is going to sound stupid."
"I'm listening."
"It feels like maybe, if they don't know about it, if no one knows about it here at home, then here I can pretend that it didn't happen. This is a place untouched by all that, and if they have to think that I'm some flighty fool to keep it that way, then, alright, that's something I can live with."
Teldryn reached for Lendri's hand and found it this time. He didn't know what to say.
"But on the other hand, I couldn't just not tell them a thing. They sort of have a right to know."
"I think I understand."
It seemed that was the end of the conversation. The Dunmer had almost fallen asleep when Lendri tugged at his hand and spoke again.
"Teldryn, what if I can't get my soul back?"
Teldryn blinked at the dark ceiling and considered this possibility with a feeling like leaning out over a chasm. "Then when you're dead I'll go into Apocrypha and get your soul back myself. Now go to sleep."
(Thanks to cunning and rituals Lendri does get his soul back. I feel like the story would wander pretty far from the prompt if I went much further. A note on Teldryn and Lendri's ages, so Lendri's parents don't look paranoid: Lendri, I assume is 23 elf years and Teldryn is about seven or eight years older.)
4
"Wait, where are we going?" Teldryn glanced at Naia and Sondis for a moment before getting up to follow Lendri.
"I have a place of my own. Hopefully it hasn't been turned into a den by some jaguar or boar."
Teldryn waited until the clearing where they'd talked was hidden by a curve in the road before speaking.
"Why didn't you tell them the whole truth?"
Lendri rounded on him so quick Teldryn almost ran into him. "What in Oblivion were you thinking feeling me up at a time like that, in front of my parents, of all people?"
"I was trying to take your hand! I just reached too far in the dark."
"Oh, okay then, good. Nevermind." He kept walking.
"Anyway, I was asking why you didn't tell the truth."
"Well, what difference does it make, the reason? My soul is still sold no matter why I did it."
"So to your mind, you're no different from some crazed wizard who sold his soul for arcane knowledge, or some power hungry lord who sold his soul for power."
"I didn't say that."
"By saying that it makes no difference because the end result is the same, you implied--"
"Alright, so it was implied. I'm really not in the mood to argue logic or whatever it is that you're arguing right now."
"Don't get angry. I just want to understand why you only gave them half of the truth."
Lendri didn't answer. After a quarter of an hour they arrived at a small stone building with a deep river flowing by outside.
"Is this where you lived?"
"Yes. Looks like it's still empty."
There was a leather flap in front of the door, like a tent entrance. Inside a few leaves had blown in from the window, which had no pane. There were two and a half rooms, the third being partly crumbled and without a roof. One wall had collapsed and the stream could be seen. Bone chimes were strung in the window and some furs were strewn before the small, cold hearth. A few unusual rocks sat on the mantel piece, and the walls had been half painted with stylized vines and animals. They leaned their traveling gear against the wall and lay on the furs in the moonlight. Outside the river flowed, quiet and musical.
"You know why I don't tell them? This is going to sound stupid."
"I'm listening."
"It feels like maybe, if they don't know about it, if no one knows about it here at home, then here I can pretend that it didn't happen. This is a place untouched by all that, and if they have to think that I'm some flighty fool to keep it that way, then, alright, that's something I can live with."
Teldryn reached for Lendri's hand and found it this time. He didn't know what to say.
"But on the other hand, I couldn't just not tell them a thing. They sort of have a right to know."
"I think I understand."
It seemed that was the end of the conversation. The Dunmer had almost fallen asleep when Lendri tugged at his hand and spoke again.
"Teldryn, what if I can't get my soul back?"
Teldryn blinked at the dark ceiling and considered this possibility with a feeling like leaning out over a chasm. "Then when you're dead I'll go into Apocrypha and get your soul back myself. Now go to sleep."
(Thanks to cunning and rituals Lendri does get his soul back. I feel like the story would wander pretty far from the prompt if I went much further. A note on Teldryn and Lendri's ages, so Lendri's parents don't look paranoid: Lendri, I assume is 23 elf years and Teldryn is about seven or eight years older.)