Elfroot. That's it. Elfroot. (book 1)

Prologue 3/4

         As Kuu suspected, their Keeper, Deshanna Istimaethoriel Lavellan, was not happy to hear about their little adventure in the least. The first thing the elder did was grab Kuu and his little brother by the tips of their ears and drag them into her tent for a good scolding. It had to be around midnight by the time they managed to escape her rage - and already, Kuu felt terrible. He had never been shouted at before in such a hateful manner. The terrible part was, she shouted more at him than his brother.

"You are the eldest, and my first apprientence!" she raged. "As such, you must behave like it! Setting an example for those who will come after you is a nessecity! You can and will not behave like your misfit of a brother! Usually you come to me when you believe something is amiss, but this time you have left me with great disappointment!"

Kuu held his head down, covering his face with his hands, and therefore hiding the embarrassment on his features. He was sure the whole clan heard her tirade. They were probably watching him now, shaking their heads in disappointment and pity.

He heard footsteps approaching, and immediately knew it was his brother. "I should've told the keeper about your plans the moment I saw you packing," he muttered into his palms. He couldn't look at Jules right now. It would either make him cry or run, and he was embarrassed enough already.

"Quit whining," Jules said, tapping his foot. "It looks awfully pathetic on you. And I don't see what the big deal is. Are you truly so spoiled that you'll cry the moment someone yells at you?"

Kuu's head whipped up, and he scowled at his little brother. "You don't understand!" he snapped. "You don't have as many things expected of you! I can't afford to cause trouble and be rebellious if I'm going to be keeper of our clan one day. I break the rules once, and this is what happens! Next time, I know to stay away."

Jules' gaze narrowed, and he seemed to frown. "I don't understand how we're even related," he said, staring into Kuu's crystalline eyes. "We're nothing alike. You're so uptight you can't even see that there's a world beyond the dalish. We're supposed to be brothers! We're supposed to be in life together! Breaking rules and going on adventures!"

"We're brothers in nothing but blood," Kuu stated.

"..." Jules looked to the side. "I suppose you're right about that."

Kuu's chest tightened as his little brother began to walk away, hands stuffed into his pockets. "At least I had fun today," said the brunette elf before vanishing behind one of the tents. Kuu stayed sitting by the bonfire for a few minutes, thinking of what he had said. We're brothers in nothing but blood... He responded so casually to that. Does Jules truly hold such indifference towards me? Or is It I who have animosity for him... He sighed and returned to covering his face. He shouldn't have said what he did, but he wasn't going to apologize for it. Not yet, at least.

He retired to his own tent shortly after, feeling somewhat disappointed when he found it empty. Sleeping on the floor every night... It's what I've done since I was born, he thought, resting back on his bedroll. Is this truly what I want to do for the rest of my life, though...?

Kuu shook his head, sighing. These were obviously Jules' thoughts snaking their way into his head and nothing more. He ignored them for the time being, and allowed himself to doze into sleep. A night of dreams surely awaited him, as the rest of a dreamer was not a peaceful one.

When he woke in the morning, he certainly didn't expect to find a good quarter of his clan missing. He almost wondered if his little brother had run away again, and those missing were part of a search party to find him. It wouldn't be surprising, knowing Jules. He loves distracting everyone from their duties. Kuu somewhat frowned at the thought and made his way to Keeper Deshanna's tent, but was stopped by a young elven woman with pale blonde hair. She touched his arm, then stepped back. "Sorry, Lethallin," she apologized. "But I'm afraid you can't enter the keeper's tent right now."