Among the Birches *NaNoWriMo 2013*

An Unusual Homecoming

When she reached the first guidepost, nestled along the path from the shore to the settlement, only two hours had passed and she was near enough, now, to hear the elven and human singing, cart wheels turning in the distance, and the murmur of the marketplace-- if those sounds were present. They were not.

Now, instead of rushing, Kya slowed to an elven crawl, doing her best to ensure that if any where around, she would escape detection. She even clasped the small sliver of stone which all elves carried in a small sachet near to their breast, allowing them to become invisible (a thing the elves of the island swore not to use around the humans, for it frightened them too much). Its magic wasn't perfect: she could still be heard, for instance, if she misstepped and broke one of the many twigs scattered on the ground, and it was feasible that mightier eyes than the elves' may be able to see past it, but it was suited for the occasion.

One hand to a small sling and the other to her chest, Kya moved along the path, listening hard as she went. She was almost to the thick wall of conifers which hid the human's houses so well, and still all had been silent. Usually, Kya could also sense (albeit vaguely) the machinations of the minds of humans, hearing (when she listened) a small hum of everday chatter: Oh! I need to get some honey! or I wonder if Fred's back yet? or Aye me, if that child of mine ain't been found in the woods with that girl again... Actually, a great deal of the human chatter had to do with sex. From age ten upwards, it seemed that any given human harbored a hundred fantasies regarding each other, all glorified with showers of petals and their floral scent and pubescent genitalia, meeting over and over. They copulated everywhere that wasn't utterly forbidden to them by the elves. Places beautiful and ugly: the elves knew that the humans would run off in pairs to muddy alleys, moonlit forest clearings, and all the places in-between to achieve mutual orgasm. They were frequently pregnant and little children ran around through all the streets. The humans were faithful to one another, too; mostly, they would stick with one mate, choosing another only if death separated them. But death in youth was rare, then, so generally they remained happily together.

Elves regarded love and sex much differently. Many elves never paired and never reproduced. Unlike humans, elven connectivity was complex; the elves believed that they were only ever made to mate with one other person, and oftentimes, that person might never find their mate or, perhaps, even have been formed by the creative force. Of those that found their match (most of whom had to seek them out, on the inland), they were loyal unto death and afterward. The elves were much like the humans in body form, just more slender, spry, and smooth; they appreciated orgasm just as much-- and some among them achieved it just as much-- as the humans, but there were simply more impediments to their coupling. Elven children were rare, especially in the isolated tribe which Kya belonged to.

Not all elves took elves for their partners; not all humans took humans. There were some-- even fewer in number than elven children-- who fell in love with one of the opposite race. These pairings were not specifically frowned upon, but made it particularly difficult for the couple to find their place. Typically, any such mixed-pairings went to live in a small, tidy bunch of stone cottages along the ridge of a hill not far out of town; there, the elven maids painted lonely scenes while human maids pushed themselves harder into books and the men of both races gathered together to tell stories and tend their gardens and apiaries. The children of these alliances-- beautiful beings which tended to combine all the good qualities of both races-- ran up and down the lanes and into the town to wonder at the other young children, wholly elven or wholly human, who despite their purity and kindness had great difficulty with truly connecting with.

Kya herself had not yet loved nor been particularly interested in seeking her love. She occupied herself largely with dance and craft, weaving beautiful tapestries and giving praise with melodic movement. Though worthy of the best of the elven group in beauty, intelligence, and wisdom, Kya was exceedingly fond of the humans surrounding her, and would often instruct their children in history and art or dance in their festivals. She went out to the hill where the half-elves lived often, too, to hear their tales. The half-elves travelled most of all and farthest of all, and it was they who had seen the most of the world.