there are tall elves and small elves, nice elves and... (introduction)

[mostcraftiest]

Damn fools. Fools, all of them! If they think they will last an hour under that fool Orodreth - well. A slight change in plans only. Though the desertion of his own son - that stung, a little. He should have been firmer with the boy. Spent more time with him here, perhaps, rather than leaving him to tinker in his smithy at whatever little projects

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[ninja_niko]

Somewhere on the ground, Niko is training. He's possibly passing some of his annoyance at Caranthir off on a long and painful kata.

Feel free to interrupt, Curufin.

[mostcraftiest]

Curufin is always glad to interrupt the activities of the lesser people when he requires something from them. Especially some Edain swordsman. He keeps his hand near his sword, definitely not relaxed. Even more wary of treachery, now. "You, Edain," not quite snapped. He wants answers dammit, and is going to get them. And snappy.

[ninja_niko]

Whoamanners. Niko stills, takes a breath, sheathes his sword. Then he turns, and well - doesn't show his surprise. He didn't know this voice, but now that he sees the elf, he's fairly certain that he has a Feanorian in his face. When he spots the dark hair, he decides only three choices are possible.

Celebrimbor, Curufin or Maglor. Maglor would be more polite and worldly. Celebrimbor would also be more courteous, he wagers.

He knows already who he's talking to. "My Lord?" He's carefully polite.

[mostcraftiest]

Manners with people Curufin sees as his inferiors are not his strong point. Unless he really wants something from them. He doesn't bother to assess Nik, not much, mostly assuming he won't be a threat. "This place. What is it?" It's a demand more than a question, really, but.

Carefully polite is probably the best way to go, really, for the moment. At least the air of vague disdain isn't downright hostility.

[ninja_niko]

And freshly landed from the cuckoo's nest. Great. He should have kept his sword unsheathed, though perhaps looking nonthreatening is the best way to go with this one. Fine.

"It's called the Mansion. Highly descriptive, I know," he replies, deadpan, and he points at the building. "Anything else for your service?"

[mostcraftiest]

He looks a touch - but only a touch, annoyed. "That tells me nothing." Just a bit impatient, yes. His plans have been disrupted and that is not okay. Everyone disrupting his plans. Bah.

He at least isn't touching his own sword, which is better than he's doing with some.

[ninja_niko]

"I did warn you that it wasn't very descriptive," Niko points out practically. "Unfortunately, it's as much as I, or anyone else around here, might know. But if you purport to pursue a conversation, perhaps introductions would be in order?"

Except for how he already has a fairly accurate guess as to who his interlocutor is, Niko does prefer to do things in the formal sense of the term.

[mostcraftiest]

He looks slightly irritated. And is tempted to correct that he does not converse with lesser beings. But doesn't, quite, and just dips his head, barely. "Curufinwe," simply enough, "And you live here, do you not? There must be more than a name."

[ninja_niko]

Lesser being in presence would retort that if he does not converse, then be may go on his merry way, thank you very much.

"I live here as much as you do, though I've been here longer, simply enough. And the name is all there has ever been to it. This place has not been claimed, has no master, though there are beings of power beyond yours or mine who may affect it from time to time." He doesn't bring up Celegorm. Not yet.

Better to keep an ace in his pocket.

[mostcraftiest]

"'Beings of power.'" He doesn't like the sound of that, and it makes his tone dubious. "I see." His tone says that he'd better elaborate. And it has no master. Interesting. He stores that away, carefully, for his records.

For the moment, he stays silent, waiting, eyes still trained intensely on Niko. Eyes that allow no distractions. Much like Niko, really, in their focus and intensity, though gone horribly awry.

[ninja_niko]

Niko sustains his gaze evenly, probably in a way similar to Finrod's calm impassibility, though younger he may be.

"Do you?" He looks at him, evenly. "I don't doubt your brothers will inform you readily of all that comes and passes here," he says, still very calm, both unafraid and unaffected. He's aware of the danger, but he also knows that dogs can smell fear.

[mostcraftiest]

"I would sooner not go forth ignorant," simply, "Explain yourself." He doesn't bother to disguise it as a request. As far as he's concerned, he doesn't need to. The similarity to Finrod almost irritates him, but he shoves it away - not important enough to be concerned with just now.

[ninja_niko]

"I suppose I thought you might prefer to receive the information from a trusted source, rather than a mere stranger, but as you please."

He doesn't hide, it, then, mainly because seeing Curufin flail at this might be one of the more entertaining moments of his day. Wait til Cal hears all about that.

"Morgoth is around, and he's been kind of targeting your family, for obvious reasons, of course."

[mostcraftiest]

---his first thought is where and the hand tightens on his sword, but he forces it to loosen, though a spasm of anger twists his face, furiously. "Here, meaning, I trust, not in that house," briefly, with a jerk at it, and eyes narrowed more. Anyone so unconcerned about Morgoth's presence...

[ninja_niko]

"Somewhere around here. He comes and goes, basically. It's been about, oh, six months, I think, since he did something? We're probably due for another spell." He groans, a little. "I just hope he leaves my family alone, this time."

[mostcraftiest]

"He comes and goes and there has been no preparation?" What kind of idiots are you? "Are they so regular? Could he not be planning a surprise if you expect such regularity?" Firing off questions, yes. All other hostilities are forgotten when Morgoth comes up.