𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐞𝐥𝐟 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐬𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐞𝐝 𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐬

𝘎𝘰𝘰𝘥 𝘔𝘢𝘯𝘯𝘦𝘳𝘴

Yesenia awoke slowly. Her mind was fairly clear, but it took a few minutes before she could regain control of her body. Her head was spinning slightly, but nothing too debilitating to prevent her from investigating where she was. She was no longer in chains; instead, she was bandaged and lying in a soft, comfortable bed. She looked around and it seemed like she was in an infirmary. She had never seen one before.
The air was clean, entering her lungs fresh. There must have been many trees nearby. Not a dark forest, but leaves that thrived on sunlight to emit pure and rejuvenating air.
She tried to trace her memories to understand what had happened: the orcs, the escape, fainting, and then people. They must have taken her with them, and as her vision cleared and she saw the light coming from the doorway, she immediately realized she was in the hands of elves. A strong sense of unease crept into her chest. She hadn't seen elves in at least two centuries.

She sat up, her head still spinning a little, gripping the edges of the bed. She heard someone approaching, and with a quick snap of her head, she was ready to meet the gaze of whoever was in the hallway. An elf appeared: brown hair, blue eyes, a slim face and body covered in a fitting blue garment, and, of course, pointed ears. Yesenia's first instinct was to cover her ears with two strands of her red hair, but then she thought that if they had treated her, they had surely seen everything. In any case, her hair was already positioned over her ears without her needing to touch it. The elf gave her a gentle, calm smile. She hadn't seen a face with that expression since she had been captured. Seeing it again brought her immense joy and a strong urge to cry at the same time.

"Good afternoon" he said calmly, maintaining the smile as his hands glided along the sides of his body, approaching cautiously.
Yesenia recoiled by a few millimeters.

"Where am I?" Her voice was hoarse and weak, probably from not speaking for a long, long time.

"Stay calm. You're safe here; we're in Lindon, at the Grey Havens" he said, raising his hands in a reassuring gesture, his eyes sincerely worried. The Grey Havens? Was she really in the cities of Lindon? The realm of Gil-galad?

"What is your name?" he asked gently.

"And yours?" she retorted, still on the defensive. By now, it had become her nature to always be on guard. The elf smiled and took a few steps closer.

"I am Elrond, Herald of Gil-galad, and you are in his palace right now" he said with such calm that Yesenia could hardly comprehend. It felt too foreign to her, this life. The life of her parents, who had come from Lindon.

"Why am I here?"

"A company of elves found you along a path where they expected anything but you" he said with a hint of humor. The blonde slowly removed the bandages from her wrists: there were only two round scars, like two indelible bracelets.

"You were on the brink of death when they brought you here. We only want to help you."

"Why??" she asked suspiciously, pulling down the sleeves of her thick cream-colored robe.

"Why not? You were in trouble, and besides, you're an elf" he seemed confused. He didn't understand her discomfort at being there. How could he, without knowing her story?
Yesenia realized after a few moments that her attitude didn't befit someone grateful to those who had saved her life. Maybe she would have preferred they left her to perish.

"Forgive me. I'm not used to good manners, and I fear I've lost mine. But anyway, I am no longer an elf; that privilege was taken from me long ago" this time she touched her ears, sure they had seen them.
The elf stepped closer until he was at the foot of the bed, where she sat on the side.

"I don't know what you've been through, but no one can ever take your identity away from you. You are, and always will be, an elf."
The redhead closed her eyes. She wanted to shout at him that those were just lies, deceptive illusions. She had not been an elf since she hadn't been able to defend herself like one. She hadn't been since she was reduced to a filthy, obedient creature without dignity. She hadn't been one since they had cut off her ears the first night she was captured. They bled for a long time; that was all she still remembered. The pain, and the rest had faded from her mind.
The still silence between the two was interrupted by a laughter and the song of two birds flying past the door, quick as the wind. Despite her thin and tired face, there was a look of curiosity and wonder on the young woman's expression. She hadn't seen such warm, beautiful light since the last time she had been home.