#moradan

“What..?” The child asked, blinking upward with doleful eyes, lips hanging open as he tried to see up into the taller figure’s hood, where he could just barely make out pale features, and strands of black hair.

“Annoying. You’re annoying.” Moradan said, enunciating each word carefully, all while pulling his cloak from the child’s grasp, glad the hood hid his elven features, for he liked to slip through human settlements without any fuss. The grey fabric had been black once, yet it had faded in his many years of wandering, and it wasn’t until this very moment he realized how very threadbare it was too. He wondered why he cared if this youngling pulled at it, deciding that it was the principle of the matter, if nothing else.

“Oh. So anyway, can you help me find ma and pa?” The child was clearly unphased by Moradan’s insult, merely looking a tad bit hopeful now that he’d had actually been answered.

Moradan had no idea how old this child was, for he knew human offspring aged more quickly than elflings, though he generally made it a rule to stay away from either. “Did you lose them somewhere?” He asked dryly, finally heaving a theatrical sigh as he reasoned that he really did have nothing better to do then help this small wretch, annoying as it was.

“Yes!” The child sounded almost excited now. “I mean, kind of. They said to meet them at the Combe gate, but they’re not here!” He gestured wildly to the gate beyond the narrow alley in which they were standing, and Moradan looked toward it involuntarily.

“Well, seeing that this is the Staddle gate, I don’t know how you’d be able to tell that they're not at the correct gate.” Moradan looked back down in time to see the child’s face fall, and he sighed again, this time feeling a slight and wholly unwelcome twinge of guilt. “...But I can help point you in the right direction. Come on.” He peeled himself off the wall he’d been leaning upon, at first taking his customary long, quick strides, but then slowing when he realized the child was running to keep up.

“So do you usually approach random strangers in alleys for help?” Moradan asked conversationally as they walked northward, vaguely wondering if this youngling would get himself killed one day.

“You were the first person I saw.” Came his answer, and Moradan sighed yet again, waving a gloved hand toward several market stalls, and a woman hanging up her washing to dry in the midday sun that they’d just passed.

“Might I suggest one of them next time? Random folk in alleys are generally not your safest bet.” He looked down to see the child returning his gaze with a blank stare.

Moradan thought he ought to have a word with the boy’s parents when they did find them, for surely they had to teach him better than this, but he quickly dissuaded himself of that thought. Why did he care at all?

“Are you one of them Rangers?” The obnoxious voice of the child broke into Moradan's thoughts.

Snorting, he answered, “No.”

“Oh, alright. My pa says they’re strange, so that’s good you aren’t!” He jogged forward to catch up with Moradan, who’d been absently walking more quickly.

Many replies nearly came to dance upon Moradan’s tongue, including some questions about whether he seemed less strange, but he finally uttered with no small amount of sarcasm, “Your pa seems very intelligent. I see where you get it from.”

“He is!” Said the child through a grin, completely missing Moradan’s tone of voice.

Sighing again, and suddenly yearning for a drink, Moradan debated leaving the child with one of the townspeople, but thankfully for them both, the Combe gate was just coming onto view, and before he could lecture the young one on memorizing what this gate looked like, two figures were jogging forward to draw his unintended charge into an embrace. By the time they looked around to see who their son had arrived with, Moradan was watching from the shadows of another alley, this time more careful not to move, and making a mental note to replace his cloak with one that would be harder to spot in the future.

From @linden-leaf ; answering for (LOTRO) Elgaladwen.

1. What’s a core lie your character believes about themselves or the world, and where did it originate? (e.g. if they believe they’re unlovable, was there a particular person or pattern of people that taught them to think so? If they believe the world is fundamentally fair and just, what society or institution taught them what fairness and justice meant, and what the rules for them were?)

She believes she, and those of elvenkind in general, are legitimately better at, and better for most things than the other free peoples of Middle-earth. She was constantly told by her Noldo parents and grandparents that the other elven clans were inferior, and worse things about those who were not elves. She thinks she's progressive because she's personally grown to see all or most elves to be perfectly fine, and she even married a Silvan elf, but she still looks down upon the other races of Middle-earth more than she should, even if she generally doesn't let it show. She also holds a high opinion of herself and her healing and language skills, which is not entirely unwarranted, but she is not truly the best at as many things as she thinks. (Confidence counts for much, though!)

2. Who are/were the most important people in their lives? Did they choose those people for themselves (and would they choose them again)?

Her husband, Gallorth, is the most important person in her life by far, and though she has friends, and has had family she thinks are important too, she’d have been far less likely to die or kill for them. She certainly could exist without them, but not without Gallorth.

She chose him, and even if us as the players made their meeting happen, it was entirely by chance for the characters!

3. Is there a choice they’ve surprised themselves by making? (And did they learn anything about themselves through making it?)

She never thought she’d get married at all, because she was very against her parents trying to arrange marriages for her to continue their line, and she swore off everything of the sort. Luckily for her, her children will be half Silvan, so it's still a bit of a middle finger to her parents.

From @the-journey-was-the-point ; answering for Nimardril

1) Has your OC ever burned or otherwise destroyed something that reminded them of unhappy times or experiences in their past?  Was this part of an arranged event?  Or something they did spontaneously or in anger? 

Nim has the unfortunate habit of running from anything that causes her emotional turmoil, and can't be fought physically, so she tends to destroy relationships with people by leaving when things get rough, even if that's not her intention. She felt very abandoned and useless for much of her life, but doesn't realize that she's the one causing it herself now, even if it wasn't her fault as a child.

2) What is your character's preferred way of coping with stress or difficult situations? 

If she's able, fighting or killing things. Letting her rage and anger take over until she's tired enough to rest or move past whatever it was. She is a hunter, and has been a guard and soldier, so sometimes this is easy enough to do. Related  to the question above, she used to destroy things in the house she once lived in with her parents, but as she got older, she got better about only taking out her rage on things when it's actually acceptable. Unfortunately that's led to her other way of coping, which is drinking too much, as she can get away with that more easily.

She's still young for an elf, so I think in the future she will be able to face, and work on her issues, though.

3) Who's a character your OC cannot stand! It's on sight when they see them! (whether other OC or canon)

There are a few people who've humiliated her, mostly in Glaston, so she avoids going back, and doesn't want to see any of them again. It takes a lot for her to actually hate someone, and if someone did something bad enough that she did, she'd be more likely to go after them for revenge, then to avoid them.

From @angbands-last-hero ; answering for Moradan

1) Explain your character's sense of humor. For example: Is it dry? Do they like dad jokes? Are they sarcastic or overly serious? Is it easy for them to crack jokes or are they more receptive to hearing them? What do they find humorous?

He is nearly always sarcastic, and he prefers any humor over seriousness, even if he finds most people lacking. He prefers to hear drier, less obvious humor, but no matter what it is, it's a bonus if he can feel true amusement.

2) How easy is it for your character to hold a grudge? Is it hard for them to forgive and forget?

He doesn't tend to hold grudges, but more because he can't be bothered to care that much, than anything else. Or perhaps no one has done something worthy of one.

3) Very random question that is not canon compliant: Is there a book or a movie you think your character would enjoy? Does it speak to them personally or do they just find it entertaining? 

Moradan would love media with secondhand embarrassment, and other people's humiliation, which I cannot stand in real life, so there are probably things I can't think of that he'd like.

I think in modern times, he'd like the Black Company series, but it'd be too close to home in his canon life.

My questions:

Where does your character feel most at home? Is it a specific place? Or perhaps a general region or type of climate?

What brings your character the most joy in life?

What is your character’s biggest regret? Or do they have any regrets at all?