Makalaurë turned towards the eldest of his younger brothers. "Leave. Now. Take him with you before I... All of you, out!"

His outstretched arm trembled with barely contained fury and his commanding voice had an edge to it that they had not noticed before, a note of danger, of threats unveiled.

They withdrew, suddenly afraid of this brother they thought they knew.

Once out of the tent the five looked at each other. "I have never seen him like this." Curufinwë spoke first, an unusual hint of confusion apparent on his face.

Carnistir and Tyelko shared a silent look. "We did. It was before you were born, when father forbade him to move out of the house. Atto found it inappropriate that a son would not stay with his father until he was properly married. Their fight was vicious. Even Maitimo did not dare interfere. But two weeks later Maka moved out without further ado, and no one ever mentioned it again." After a pause, Tyelko added, his eyes unfocused, "Do not be fooled, you have not known him as I did once, when we were both still young. His voice is not only powerful in singing, though nowadays he avoids using it in any other way."

Curufinwë looked at him with barely hidden contempt. "I know he can make you do what he wants, Tyelko, you would never go against his wishes, would you?" He shrugged "I am not so naive. His voice does not work on me. He's a coward. A weak coward who keeps on dwelling on what has passed, while nothing can be changed."

"Shut up, just shut up. I do not need to hear those words repeated." Carnistir interfered, "You have done enough harm tonight. You have no idea. You have no idea what courage it took to make the choices he made when leaving for these accursed lands. You can call him many things, but he is no coward, nor is he weak."

Curufinwë opened his mouth to retort but got interrupted before he could even start.

"No, shut up I say, and the rest of you too! What you have to say you can say to all of us!" Carnistir furiously turned towards Ambarussa who were whispering amongst themselves. "Makalaurë did not want this any more than we do and he is right. We have responsibilities, our people need us. Without father, without…" He took a deep breath before he continued. "We cannot go blindly after Maitimo, however much we would want to. And neither can he. Whether you like it or not, that is the reality we face now brothers."

Tyelko clenched his fists in an attempt to contain his emotions. It was one thing to try and forget what had happened to their father, but quite another to ignore the fact that the one that in their youth so often had taken his place was captured by the enemy. "At least he could have heeded the terms those foul creatures brought him. He did not even allow us to be there when they came. Why did he not call for us?"

Again Curufinwë started to speak "You speak the truth Tyelko. He should not have made that decision alone. How can he even consider leaving him in the enemy's hands? If anything happens to Maitimo, I will consider it his responsibility, and his alone! Carnistir, how dare you defend him? Did you already forget what Maitimo did for you, for us? How can you even think of leaving him out there, alone? Do you wish him dead?" Curufinwë's voice rose, and for one frightening moment his brothers caught a glimpse of their father. But then the flames flickered and he spat on the ground and became himself again. Ambarussa now mingled themselves in the discussion, supporting Curufinwë and Tyelko that something had to be done, but Carnistir remained stubbornly quiet.

All that time, they did not realise that Makalaurë had left his tent.

"Silence."

He did not raise his voice. He did not have to. They fell quiet without further ado, even Curufinwë looked slightly put off by his brother's commanding tone.

Makalaurë's face was composed again, no trace visible from his earlier outburst. The white hot flames were carefully hidden once more. But his brothers knew now that they were there, right below the surface and ready to leap out at the slightest provocation. They would never admit it, but they dreaded their brother's fury.

"Stop arguing like petty fishwives. You are princes, you are the leaders of our people, you will behave and you will do what I tell you." There was a darkness in his grey eyes, one that made it clear he would not accept any backtalk.

"Ambarussa, you will go to the healing tents. Yesterday they were lacking supplies, see to it that they have all they need. You can use your platoons to forage for them. As of today, they will be your responsibility, understood? I want to hear your reports in the morning on the status of the wounded and the dead. I expect you to organize the care for the children as well, especially those that have no parents left." The twins nodded timidly and knowing that they had just been dismissed, disappeared in the night.

"Curu, as you are so eager to prove your valour, I suggest you take back the command of our border patrols. Send them north and east, there are rumours amongst the Moriquendi that a battle was fought and I want to know what is happening. Information is crucial now. Your son can lead your smiths in repairing the damage done to our weapons and he can start planning more permanent housing. He is old enough, it is time you give him some responsibility."

As the one that was most alike their father left with rage apparent in his eyes, Makalaurë stopped him mid-pace, catching his upper arm. "Do not even try to go after him. If you do, I swear to the Valar, I will find you and stop you. For now, I will not hold you accountable for what was said earlier. You were upset and I will forgive you out of love for Maitimo, but do not think that I will forget, brother. One day that tongue of yours will be your death." Curufinwë briskly pulled himself loose and strode away without a word.

"Tyelko, you take charge of the food provisions and the exploration of the land. We need clearer maps with more details on what is awaiting us south of this lake. This is war, we need information. Think on how you want to start exploring and how many men you need. Report back to me tomorrow noon time with your requests, understood?" Tyelko nodded, grateful for the opportunity to go.

"Carnistir," Makalaurë gestured to his tent. "You and I need to talk."

As he walked into the tent, Carnistir thought that all his brothers made a grave mistake by underestimating the bard. In only a few minutes time, Maka had made sure that all were where they wanted to be. Ambarussa far away from fighting, caring for the wounded instead, Tyelko out into the open, close to the water and the animals and Curu with a task before him that would keep his temper at bay. But why he had been asked to stay, he did not know.

Makalaurë's anger seemed to have disappeared and he spoke softly as they entered. "Sit, and eat, it has been a tough day for all of us." His brother moved an extra chair to the table and leant his chin on his hand, pensively staring at Carnistir. Silence fell between the brothers while they tried to swallow the bread.

They both failed miserably and after a short time, Maka shoved back his chair. "You did not have to defend me."

"Let Curu be, Makalaurë, he is angry. He always is when things are out of his control."

He looked at his brother's face and realised that the bard's earlier harsh countenance had made way for something that he could only describe as weariness. Somehow his brother suddenly looked old. It only took a few seconds before the expression disappeared, and it was just Maka again. Maka the gentle elder brother, in whose house they had all sought refuge when their father was angry.

"I know that, Carnistir. But Curu is no longer a boy and he will need to get a better grip on himself. Especially here, especially now. When you were all young, I always felt that you and Tyelko were the most impulsive ones, but the two of you have learned, you at least learned..."

"Yes I did" Carnistir laughed mirthlessly. "Or better said, others made sure I did."

"You still miss her." It was not a question, and though in any other moment Carnistir would have ignored the remark and directed the conversation elsewhere, he could not bring himself to avoid the piercing grey eyes of his elder brother this time.

"I do." He sighed. "You should not give me too much credit, Maka. In essence, I agree with their point of view. I want to go after Maitimo and my hands itch to take on the enemy, but when he called you a coward… He has no clue. When she told me she would not come, I was so angry. Especially because his wife did agree to join, she did not even ask for his reasons... I cannot even imagine what you…"

"Curu's wife never had any ideas of her own, and you know that. She always was happy to follow him wherever he went without questions." Makalaurë interrupted, leaning back in his chair. "No, your lady ever was more intelligent, and more determined to sail her own course. I liked her." He sighed once more as he stood up. "Don't forget that she loved you, my little brother, no one could deny that. It pained her greatly that you went away, of that I am sure." He went to the cupboard again, putting away the remnants of their meal.

"And your wife Maka, do you still miss her?"

Carnistir saw how his brother held the cupboard's edges until his fingers where white. He did not speak nor move for a long moment.

And Carnistir did not need any further answer. He stood up as well, walked towards his brother and whispered "You were the wisest of us all to let her free, to tell her to stay. At least she is safe, and so is your boy." He softly brushed his hand over his elder brother's shoulder before he turned away, knowing when to leave the other alone. "I will come back tomorrow, call me when you need me."

Makalaurë looked up. "I need your interest in the elves of these lands. I need you to learn their language better, you were ever good at these things. Then teach it to me and the others, we need information and I would like to learn before they know we can understand them. I do not trust them fully."

Carnistir nodded and walked to the exit of the tent. He opened a flap and almost as in afterthought asked "And you Makalaurë, what will you do? Will you claim the crown?"

Makalaurë had not moved from his position, looking at his hands that were still tightly clenched around the edge of the cupboard "I will do what I must, as the regent of our people." And Carnistir, who knew he would not get any further answer, left.