12 Days of Christmas, Day 1
Dec. 26th, 2025 11:39 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
grundyscribblingTitle: Sun, Sand, Surf
Author: Grundy
Rating: FR13
Summary: Anariel takes up a new project.
Word Count: 1025
Note: Running a day behind, as a head cold meant I crashed fairly early after Christmas dinner.
Anariel ran a cautious hand over the sanded board. To her satisfaction, she found no more rough spots. Sanding might be almost as soothing as Xander had often claimed, but she was not sorry to be moving to the next stage of construction.
“Ready to varnish?”
She grinned at her several times great-grandfather.
“I think so!”
“It’s going to be a beauty with that patterning,” Olwë told her with a hint of pride. “A fine choice.”
She might not be building a ship, but the sea Lindar had decided it was a form of watercraft and thus an eminently suitable craft for one of their princesses. She had lacked for neither assistance, advice, tools, or materials.
She just hoped it worked. Looking pretty was nice, but functional was the real goal.
“You’re fretting. There’s really no need - we take a different approach to craft here.”
He hadn’t said ‘to Tirion’ or ‘to the Noldor’, but that was the general gist. Though it wasn’t as though the Noldor could get snippy about surfing or surfboard making yet, given they had never done either before.
“It’s going to be beautiful. But I won’t really know how well it turned out until we try it in the water,” Anariel pointed out. “Just because it looks like the boards I remember, but made from wood…”
Actually, slightly prettier than most of the boards she remembered. But she might be a teensy bit biased given she’d made this one herself.
She’d decided there was little point to trying to come up with any of the plastic or foam materials used in California. If wood had worked for Hawaiians for generations, it should work just as well for elves. Of course, figuring out which woods and how to shape them into a functional board had taken some trial and error.
Happily for her, her Alqualondë kin didn’t mind an extended visit. Heck, she got the impression some of them were happy to have a less dangerous kinswoman around. (The Fearsome Foursome were showing no signs of being ready to leave yet, and Anariel suspected it wasn’t entirely because Uncles Ambarussa wanted a go at surfing. She was sure the four of them had done something to Turukano before decamping from Tirion. She’d also elected to stay with Gramma Elwing and Grampa Eärendil. It was good to have a quiet retreat on days when the Four were living up to their name.)
“Anyone trying a new design doesn’t really know how it will shake out until the sea trials,” Olwë shrugged. “Even with this new style of model testing we learned from Tinwë. I wouldn’t worry. Not only had I understood from your stories of California that surfing was meant to be fun, it’s not as if you’ll be all that far from shore. If you don’t like the performance, you swim the board to shore, we refine the design and try again.”
He looked critically at the nearly finished longboard.
“I expect that with that bottom and the fin, it should be fairly stable. Whether it has the maneuverability you expect or is balanced to your satisfaction is the question.”
Given all the shipbuilding experience he had, Anariel was in no position to argue.
She did also have the comfort of knowing that finding good waves to try it out on would be no problem. Uinen and Ossë were taking an interest, too.
“Besides, shouldn’t you be thinking more on what you’re going to do if it works?”
The twinkle in Olwë’s eye said there was something she hadn’t factored in when she decided it was time to take a stab at surfboard design.
“You’re going to have more folks wanting boards – and lessons on how to use them – than you think. You’re likely to be kept as busy as you care to be for as long as you’ll indulge everyone.”
She blinked.
Ok, she had mentioned surfing a time or two to Grandmother’s father. Her parents and grandparents all knew about it. (Which meant that Aunt Trouble and Uncles Ambarussa were in the know. And the way Uncles Ambarussa operated, Uncles Elur probably were too.) Wait, Tinu knew about it – and had been around long enough to tell everyone…
“People compared notes, little one. And everyone was intrigued. If not for Tinu’s flying sail, they probably wouldn’t have held off on experimenting until you arrived. But now you’re here and known to be working on the prototypes, I suspect everyone’s only waiting to hear you have one that works.”
Olwë chuckled.
“Fortunately, I imaged a good many Lindar will be capable of making their own boards once we point them in the right direction. I’m just curious to see what the Noldor make of the concept.”
“A competition, probably,” Anariel sighed.
“Cheer up, little sun. Competition or not, you’ll still have the honor of being the first – not to mention several grandfathers inclined to be ridiculously proud of you for it. It might even balance out that little project I hear you’re conducting in Fëanáro’s own workshop.”
She grinned, as much at the idea of Grandfather Butthead’s reaction to her planned improvement to his fountain as at how totally level-headed he was going to be about the Lindar claiming another achievement by a daughter of Elrond.
“Doubtful. I don’t think balance is really a thing he does. He’s exhibit A for the ‘Noldor have no chill’ theory.”
Olwë just shook his head, as she’d expected he would. Alqualondë had been highly amused to hear peredhil opinions on both Fëanor and the Noldor.
“I think this is enough for one day, don’t you? It’s nearly dinnertime. Young Elwing will be expecting you.”
Anariel looked up in surprise. She’d been concentrating on her work to the point she’d entirely missed the sun sinking toward the horizon.
“Off you go,” Olwë advised with a chuckle. “And remember to warn her you’re close to finishing. She’s going to want to see you try it out as much as I do.”
Anariel paused only long enough to make sure her tools were all put away and give her grandfather a hug before she scampered.
no subject
Date: 2025-12-27 06:55 pm (UTC)I hope you feel better! Thank you for your craft and gifts this Christmas season!
no subject
Date: 2025-12-28 04:51 pm (UTC)