treading water | halbrand & isildur [on hold]

1 | mouth breathers

DO NOT MAKE ME PULL YOU BY YOUR EAR.

A lone figure was floating effortlessly on top of the gentle waves created by the sea, having drifted far too west than anyone else of her kind would have traveled. She didn't seem bothered by her location though — in fact, she was rather relaxed as she stared up at the cloudy night sky. It was always cloudy there, hiding the paradise just a ways away.

The girl was a Sea Elf, one with flowing white hair and skin tinted an odd blue color to help camouflage herself in the water. Her arms were thrown back with a long trident made of gold resting over her elbows and propped under her head as if it were a floating pillow rather than a weapon that she was expertly trained in.

Though she had a thin, golden circlet crown around her head that looked like it was made of seaweed, one wouldn't know who she was unless they were familiar with the lineage of the Elashor line. Given how reclusive and practically mythical Sea Elves were to the rest of the world above — aside from the Númenórean people that thought of them as deities despite never making contact — her existence was unknown and it would remain so.

Of course, the Mouth Breathers — regular Elves, though she and her kind always preferred the somewhat derogatory name — knew of the existence of Sea Elves. But the two people always remained separate. It wasn't difficult given that they were separated by the land and sea. Intermingling was also discouraged on both sides given that Sea Elves were a little more morally ambiguous when being compared to the oh-so-ethical above-ground Elven kind.

Because of that, Sea Elves rarely swam toward land of any kind, only sticking to visiting amongst their own kingdoms. They were also instructed to stay far away from the one place they might ever stumble across a Mouth Breather out on the open water.

The western sea of Ekkaia where the tide led them to the Undying Lands.

It was rare for a ship to pass through, bringing Elves to Valinor, the place they migrated for eternal bliss after a long life in Middle-Earth. But even as the ships grew fewer and far between, Sea Elves still stayed clear of the territory.

That never stopped her though.

Nimriel Elashor was the youngest daughter of King Malon Elashor, the last of six children and least likely to ever see the throne given that the other five were all boys. This was a great relief, as Nimriel could think of nothing less exhausting and boring than ruling over not only their capital kingdom of Naramyr but the other kingdoms across the oceans of Middle-Earth as well.

The Princess — who her friends informally referred to as 'Nim' whenever her controlling father was out of earshot — wasn't exactly the kind of person one wanted to see on a throne. Or at least, someone like her father never wanted to see. She was far too impulsive and naive to ever rule, and the girl could rarely take things seriously. After all, she was only ninety-two and hardly considered an adult at that age.