I'm sorry it took me so long. I hope you'll enjoy the story. Just please let me know what you think.

Part two

The breaking of the weather did not pass during the night and the dawn welcomed the travellers with snowflakes dancing in the strong wind. They were melting, but it didn't lighten anyone's mood. Despite having spent the night in the relatively dry place, the damp chill seemed to drain the wounded from all the strength. Amras looked quite well when compared to the others, so Maedhros ceased insisting that they should not split. He wanted to reach the village as soon as possible and ask for shelter before it would be too late for some.

They moved as soon as Caranthir was done with dyeing his brother's hair. The oak bark did the trick and Maedhros's fiery hair got some nice chestnut shade.

"You look like Finwe," commented Caranthir, looking critically at the effect of his work. "I wonder what Curvo will say."

"He needs to see me first," muttered Maedhros indifferently and hid his stump in a sling. Before they went, he ordered Nethanar and Himeleth, who were staying behind with Amras, not to care about human animosity and bring Amras to the village, if they decided he was getting worse. His brother must have heard that, but he said nothing, just wished them good luck and went back inside the shed.

Caranthir took the lead. They decided it was best for Maedhros to hide between the other wounded and not to draw attention to himself. No one was overly cheerful about the prospect of meeting the mortals, but they hoped the Second-born would show some compassion for the refugees.

Before they reached the first buildings, some men came to meet them. They watched the newcomers with suspicion and they kept their weapons ostensibly within reach. There were also some archers hidden between the houses.

"What do you want?"

"Help," replied Caranthir and he moved in front of the rest. "We are running away from war, but our wounded have no strength to go on walking." He didn't even have to lie. They had been struggling for the last half an hour and Celegorm's scout was barely standing.

"You look like warriors." An elderly man with a scar crossing his face looked at the elves suspiciously. "We don't want to have anything to do with those who led our brothers and sons to death."

"Are they carrying weapons too?" asked Caranthir, irritated, and he pointed at the elleths and the boy. "How about her?"

Dinessel, held by one of the elves, was staring at the men with frightened and feverish eyes. Their foreign speech and harsh voices must have unsettled her, for she clang to her guardian closely.

"Is this an elven child?" asked some young man curiously; he was barely an adult himself. "Just like ours."

"Aye, one of ours," nodded the elf who was holding the girl and tugged the blanket tightly around her, trying in vain to protect her from the rain. "Morgoth's poison is trying to take her away from us after we managed to rescue her from orcs."

"We need shelter and some warm food." Caranthir stepped in, seeing that the leader of the men hesitated. "We will pay and we can help you with daily chores and hunting. Our wounded need rest. So does the little one."

The man with the scar looked at him judgingly, then nodded.

"Third house on the right, you should all fit there," he decided. "It's been empty since Summer, we don't even use it as a storage house. You make yourself comfortable, and we shall talk," he pointed at Caranthir, who exchanged glances with Maedhros and went as the official leader to trade.

xxx

Fire was lit at once in the large chamber that took most of the house. Wet clothes were hanged around and beddings for the wounded prepared by the heating wall. The room was a bit too small for all of them, but they didn't want to ask for anything else. Despite rather friendly attitude of their hosts, the elves remained distrustful towards the men near the house. Even before Caranthir returned, Maedhros had discreet guards placed by the windows. He wasn't the only one feeling that it would be all too easy to lock them in that house and burn them, if the villagers decided the elves were dangerous or wished to seek vengeance for all their fallen men.

It seemed, though, that the mortals had some compassion for the wounded, as soon fresh bread and hot stew was brought. Maedhros retreated to one of the windows facing a small garden, now abandoned and unkempt. His task was to stay out of sight and stay vigilant.

The rest of the day was mostly resting and repairing clothes and weapons. The wounded mostly slept, now that they were in a dry and warm house. Earlier it was hard for the seasoned warriors to fall into a deep healing sleep, when they couldn't know if something would not attack their camp. Now, in a relatively safe place, they could afford it. By the next morning at least nausea was mostly gone and the elfling, for whom they feared most, livened up enough to ask about Amras. Maedhros, who was near her, silenced her at once; his brother's name should not be spoken out loud. However, the improvement of her condition allowed them to hope that Morgoth's poison would not take her from them after all. The little one was still sleepy and just sat on someone's knees, but she was no longer the lifeless doll they had carried the previous day.

The child was valuable. Maedhros could see his warriors, seasoned by the years of protecting Himring and often grim, brightened when they looked at the girl, treating her a bit like a proof that not all was lost. Losing her would be a great blow into morale, fragile already after the defeat and after watching the desolation for the last two months. The child brought a bit of smile and if everything went well, she was probably going to be spoiled by the whole party. Someone already begged some milk with honey for her, someone brought an apple, finally someone was passing the idle hours by curving a small figure for her. No one was disheartened by the fact that the child mostly sat hidden between the beddings and if she spoke, she was just asking tearfully about Amras.

xxx

A group of men returning to the village attracted attention of both men and elves. Two of them kept Amras, pushing him and holding tightly by his arms to prevent him from falling. The others were holding his two companions. Their demeanour was hostile and they regarded the upcoming elves with visible distaste.

Amras tripped and one of the men pulled his arm, making him hiss.

"Hey!" Someone rushed forward. "Hands off!"

"Do you know him?" asked the leader of the human scouting party. "He's a Feanorian, one of the Noldor princes responsible for our defeat!"

"What's going on?" Caranthir came between the elves gathered in front of the house.

"We found them two hours walk away from here." The man pushed Amras. "Is he one of you? He tried to resist us."

"Give them to us." Caranthir balanced between requesting and demanding as he came closer step by step.

"Is he yours?"

"Leave elves to elves," insisted the son of Feanor, using the last of his patience. "Those are matters to settle between us. And he was not a chief commander there." Above the human heads he noticed Maedhros standing at the doorstep and he groaned inwardly. He sent his brother a warning glance and fortunately Maedhros retreated back to the house.

"You are very well informed." The man regarded Caranthir suspiciously. "Is he your commander? We have matters to settle with him."

"No. But he is wounded, so give him to us and let us treat him." Caranthir was already so close that he could have touched his brother's cheek, if only he reached for it. Amras was wise enough to stay silent.

"Aye. Sick, like yours," remarked someone. "Like those wounded you have laid in the chamber. Are they not from your party as well?"

"We've met many refugees on our way," said Caranthir; truth was better than a lie forged on spot. "Many of our people have met some orcs. And those here need help, so let us help them."

Many things happened at once. Behind Amras and his captors an elf, struggling earlier to stay upright, went limp in the hold of his guards. The Noldor moved uneasily, some of them grabbed their weapons, seeing that the men tried to haul the unconscious elf upright.

Amras jerked, though he could do little with his hands tied. The man on his left fastened his grip to hold the elf, who instinctively tried to free his wounded arm. The man took half a step back and suddenly stepped on a child, unnoticed earlier in the commotion. The elfling squeaked, frightened, and fell as she was pushed. Seeing her, the man hesitated and it was enough for Amras to break free.

Caranthir was not going to stand idly. With one step he was by his brother, he grabbed his arm and pushed him towards their elves. A dagger flashed in his hand; one fluent move and Amras was free.

The son of Feanor was not the only one who rushed to aid. The humans didn't have time to react, as the elves grabbed the unconscious elf and the elleth who was trying to free herself; no one even drew their weapons.

Dinessel stumbled back on her feet and ran to Amras, as if she saw only him. She clang to his leg and only then did she burst into tears, shaking and embracing him closely, trying to make herself invisible.

The youngest son of Feanor bent and grabbed the child with his right arm. The girl immediately wrapped her arms around his neck and hid her face in his soaked collar, still weeping.

"We asked you," hissed Caranthir coldly, removing his hand from the sword grip; he was the only one to have done so. The nearby Noldor moved closer, ready to protect him.

"This is how you repay our hospitality?" asked the human leader furiously. "You draw swords at our ground and interfere in our matters in return for food and shelter?

"We will pay for your bread and hospitality," Caranthir reminded him. "But when the elves are concerned, it is our matter, for none of us will stand an elf facing human judge. And it doesn't matter if we know him or not. Those here are wounded and they will get our help."

"You are lying!" called one of the few young men from the behind; a barely adult again. "That child shows everything. This Noldor prince must have been with you!"

Caranthir turned towards the youngling, not even trying to hide his contempt. He could come closer and look down at him, but he didn't have to; there was enough of ostensible patronising in his gaze. He just took a step forward, protecting Amras, who was holding the till crying girl; he seemed to be at loss what to do with her.

"We found this child alone on a battlefield. The only one who survived from the whole group. Who knows whom she has known earlier." Caranthir just shrugged. A truth again...

"The elf may be yours, but he has to pay for our brothers and sons who followed his call," replied the human commander again. "And he will face our judgement."

"You will judge no one," stated Caranthir firmly. "Take the wounded inside and take care of them," he ordered his elves. "I will not change my mind. Leave him be and we will not draw weapons at your ground," he warned them and followed his brother without looking at the men. He gestured at the elves carrying their unconscious companion to go first, then grabbed Amras by the arm, careful not to touch the wound. His younger brother walked firmly, but Caranthir could see his tension. He was boiling inwardly as well and he would have exploded, if not for the necessity to take his brother to safety.

"Moryo, take her from me," hissed the redhead, as soon as they were inside. "I can't feel my hands."

"She's holding herself," snorted the elder of the brothers, but he reached for the child as they entered the chamber.

"Naaaaaaaay!" A tearful protest and tiny arms wrapped more tightly around Amras's neck was the only response of the child. "Naaaaaaay..." her crying turned into a quieter sniffling.

"Dinessel, let go of me," ordered Amras. "Or you will fall."

"You were to watch the children," said Caranthir to his eldest brother, trying to relieve some tension. He untangled the girl's tiny hands and took her from Amras.

Maedhros ignored him. He examined the redhead, then looked worriedly at his companions. He said nothing about the incident with humans; it was plain to everybody that things had just got complicated.

"What happened? he asked, as Amras came eagerly close to the fire, massaging his wrists, numb from the were reviving the unconscious elf near the rest of the wounded.

"The wind made the shed collapse," hissed the youngest of the brothers angrily and sat by the fire; now that they were alone, his movements were stiff and careful. "Nethanar got buried under beams and HImeleth had to free me first before we could dig him out. The Edain came before we had a chance to check his injuries." Amras looked at his companion. Someone was helping him to get rid of his cloak and tugging him with a dry blanket. The elf seemed confused.

"That's not good," winced Maedhros. "It would be best to leave as soon as possible, but I see Nethanar is going to need a few hours of rest."

"At least," muttered Amras doubtfully. "The shed has fallen apart to the last board. We were lucky we didn't break anything and that Himeleth was outside. How's your head, Nethanar?"

"I'll live." The elf just shrugged. "But right now someone would have to lead me and I'm not sure how far I would go. I barely managed to get here," he admitted.

Amras muttered something angrily and took off his wet cloak as well.

"We'll stay as long as we need." Maedhros pointed the nearest elf to replace him by the window and he grabbed a spare blanket. He tossed it over his brother's shoulders, seeing that he didn't intend to undress more. "Rest, we'll see in the evening what to do. Hopefully we will leave at dawn."

"I hope so. I've already had enough of this place."

"Did they threaten you?" asked Celegorm, stopping mending his clothes.

"Me, yes." The youngest of the brothers just shrugged, not really concerned. "It would have been worse if we had been armed, but we didn't manage o get our things from under the boards. Right now I have only this," he pointed at the knife in his shoe, which the humans must have missed.

"As if you needed more," snorted Himeleth. "I'll wait till dusk and go retrieve our things," she suggested.

Amras nodded in agreement and assigned two more elves to that task. It would be easier to slip from the village unnoticed at night. There was no point in arising more suspicions among the people who were already seeking revenge for their fallen brothers.

xxx

Despite their earlier arrangements, the Edain refused to share their food any longer as they could not judge Amras. Caranthir wasn't going to let them touch his brother and they would gladly have left, if Nethanar didn't need some rest, at least till the morning, to be able to go. Celegorm and his scout were feeling better. Amras seemed sore, but fine to continue the journey. However, they were forced to wait.

The only one pleased with such arrangements was little Dinessel. Much to everyone's amusement, the girl clang to Amras and would not leave him. The chamber gave him little space to escape her. Unfortunately, her behaviour, as well as the fact that none of the elves treated Amras like a prisoner awaiting trial, just proved the Edain that he was part of the group. Reluctance turned into animosity, especially at the recollection of the swords bared so quickly by the elves.

Maedhros had the guards doubled without even hiding it. He would have joined the elves outside instead of sitting idly in the house, if not for the fact that it was best to keep his identity secret as long as possible.

Just like they agreed, Himeleth left with two other elves to retrieve all their belongings from under the remains of the shed. They were not going to return, but meet the others outside the village. They decided to leave at dawn, even if it meant slowing the pace because of the wounded The poison was no longer life-threatening and everybody was eager to get back to the rest of the Noldor, before snow would fall.

Caranthir watched Maedhros discreetly for most of the day. He knew his brother was restless and it was only increased by his idleness and standing aside. He knew that if they would not leave soon, his brother was going to explode. In moments like this he regretted Maglor was not with them, as he was usually the one being able to soothe Maedhros. Unfortunately, when they left Dolmed, the singer was still recovering from the wounds he gained in battle and besides, Maedhros would never leave Curufin alone with the dwarves. As much as Curufin could get on with their hosts, Maedhros didn't trust him and it was still hanging between the two of them. The eldest of the brothers intended to stay at first, but Maglor convinced him to go with the rest of their brothers and not sit in one place. Caranthir agreed with him eagerly, especially because Maglor had some experience in organising camp from scraps – he had proved that by the lake Mithrim. Maedhros could go when it was most dangerous, as usual. Just like Maglor, Caranthir too secretly hoped that it would keep him occupied and take him away from their defeat and Fingon's death. Now that he watched them, he was no longer so sure they were right.

xxx

The morning was grey and grim and the yard was covered with the frost from the night. Winter was coming closely and there was no point in trying to see the sun; the thick clouds on the sky could only bring snow.

Everybody was ready at dawn. They carefully packed all the food Caranthir had earlier negotiated from their hosts. They could not count on getting any more provisions, but what they had saved was going to be enough for the first day. With some luck they would be able to go far away to dare to stop for longer and hunt.

"How's your arm?" asked Maedhros, adjusting the sling hiding his stump.

"It's weak," admitted Amras angrily. He straightened his elbow, then hugged his arm closely to his chest and winced. "I hurt it yesterday. But the poison is mostly gone, so don't worry."

"Can you carry something?"

"Of course."

"Good. You'll take the little one," decided Maedhros. "I don't want you to go in trouble and attract more attention than necessary. And you're defenceless anyway," he reminded his brother.

Amras wished he could object, but he had to agree. It didn't really matter that he was still stiff and sore, but he could hardly do anything without his sword. And it was important to keep the elfling where she would not disturb anyone. They could be almost sure she would not leave Amras willingly.

xxx

They were waiting on the road. Men, usually elderly, along with boys, looking like children in the elves' eyes. Just a few adults, armed with whatever they possessed. There were also some women with sticks and prongs. Others were standing on the porches and in the gardens; their faces were unfriendly.

"We have some matters to settle," said the man with whom Caranthir had traded. "He's ours," he pointed at Amras. The elves around him placed their hands suggestively on the sword hilts.

"We have this settled yesterday," growled Caranthir; he had far less patience than the day before. "And as for the payment, here it is," he tossed a pouch to the man, who grabbed it, but didn't look inside. "Let us pass."

The stern faces of the villagers suggested that they were not going to give up lightly. Despite the elf's request, almost a threat, none of them moved. On the contrary, some of them stepped forward, raising their weapons. In response, some of Amras's elves moved closer to him, ready to protect him.

"He's responsible for the death of our brothers!" called someone from behind.

"Just like your kin are responsible for the death of our warriors and the fall of our king!" retorted Caranthir. In any other situation his eldest brother would have been surprised with such display of loyalty to Fingon, but not now. "Treacherous kind that brought shame on the Children of Iluvatar. And you dare to demand anything?!"

"Mind your words, elf, or your ignorance will be your doom," warned him one of the elder men, stopping the overzealous boys at his left with one gesture.

Caranthir barely heard him. He reached for his sword subconsciously, his blood boiled. This damn mortal...

"That's enough!" Came an order behind him and the man took a step back.

Maedhros's steel eyes threw thunders as he made a few steps to stand beside Caranthir. He placed his stump on his brother's chest, as if he wanted to prevent him from an attack. He kept his left hand on his sword, but he didn't bare it. Caranthir knew he could easily move past his brother if he wanted, but his sudden intervention almost paralysed him.

The human leader stared at the elf with astonishment, but he quickly guessed his identity. Maedhros did not let him speak.

"We differ in customs, that is true, but you don't really think that the youngest among us would be the leader, do you?" he asked in a calm tone that made the blood freeze. "If you seek the person responsible for strategy, my youngest brother was not that person. Make way and let us pass and we will probably never meet again. Touch him and none of us will hesitate," he warned coldly.

Amras muttered something, visibly displeased that he was defenceless and needed protection, but the moment Maedhros decided to step in it was plain that he was no longer going to hide. Arguing with him, especially in front of the humans, was pointless.

"Morifinwe was wrong to call you traitors." Maedhros continued calmly, using the name Caranthir had given them, He was speaking o the elderly man, as if there were no others around them. "But you are wrong, holding my brother responsible for the deaths of your kin. Traitors mingled with us and I as the leader am responsible for not spotting them in time.. The Enemy works with both sheer force and deceit, he has proven it more than once. I understand your thirst for revenge, but do not forget who is you real enemy. Touch Amras and blood will be spilled. Be careful not to waste it, as you don't have much to spare. Leave it for the fight with the real evil. Our quarrels will only please Morgoth."

Caranthir blushed as he heard his brother condemning his words about their hosts, but Maedhros's arm kept him in place. The people listened to the arguments of the eldest son of Feanor and some of them, especially the older ones, were willing to agree with him. Caranthir just forced himself to stay silent, but he could not help but wonder where did Maedhros find all that conviction. If he didn't know him, he would have assumed Maedhros really believed in what he had said.

"Let them pass," said the man at last, silencing the murmurs that arose behind his back. He came closer to Maedhros and looked him in the eye, not at least intimidated. "I shall regret till the end of my days the day when I let my people join your war, but I can see some right in your words. Go away and I hope we will never meet again.

The eldest son of Feanor nodded slightly. The people reluctantly stepped aside. Maedhros gestured Caranthir to lead, but he stayed, waiting and watching the man. He went only when Celegorm, as the last one, placed his hand on his arm.

"I don't envy you. You are going to carry this burden far longer,' said the man at last.

None of the elves tuned back to reply him.

Soo? Did you like the encounter with humans? Please tell me (if you didn't feel free to tell me as well).