All translations, explanations, advertisements, and thought processes are at the end of the chapter.
Disclaimer: All shows/ books/ video games/ songs that are mentioned in this chapter are all © to their respective owners, I don't own them.
Nórui the seventeenth of the Year 2002 during the Third Age
"What do you propose that we do? We cannot leave him here."
"Cael, don't you dare mention something like that! Doing that to an elfling, or to any child, is unspeakable."
"I did not suggest it! I merely said what we cannot do." Cael protested.
"Cael, no one said you have." A pause for a meaningful glare and the sound of someone huffing; then he continued. "We should probably send our best rider to Imladris with him and on our fastest horse…" There were sounds of agreement.
"No." Glorfindel said, tightening his grip on me. "Have you forgotten why we are here in the first place? It would be foolish to send someone alone to Imladris with all those companies of orcs prowling about."
"What if we divided among ourselves evenly and then went to-"
"Then there wouldn't be enough for the hunt." I could almost hear Glorfindel's eyes narrow.
The elf next to us spoke up, "Glorfindel is right, we would be outnumbered. What if we left him in the care of the humans in the nearby town…?" Many elves protested loudly at his suggestion.
"There is no telling what they could do to him."
"What they would do."
"Even if they were respectable humans, they wouldn't be able to properly protect him against any orc raids or attacks."
"It is better that he stays with the company of elves."
"If the wrong sort of humans found out that he was from elven origins…" There was a collective shudder amongst the group. I whimpered at the thought of leaving Glorfindel; he was the only one I trusted and knew in this weird place where monsters roamed and elves existed.
He rubbed my back soothingly before saying, "Hulian is right, it is better to have him stay in the company of elves. He will have to travel with us on our hunt, until we get close enough to Imladris, and where one of us can get him there without any hassle."
The elf next to us waved away any protests, saying, "If anyone has a better idea, speak up now. No? Then it is decided. We will continue the hunt tomorrow. Ruean, you have the first watch." People got up and moved around. The majority of them went to bed, including Glorfindel and I.
In case you didn't guess, Glorfindel was the "angel" that found me. He turned out to be an elf. As soon as the other elf had left to inform the other elves in the hunting party that Glorfindel was in, he introduced himself to me. He asked my name, but I couldn't bring myself to tell him. He had frowned, but didn't ask anymore on the matter.
He had me change into some clean clothes and let me keep on my women's boxers that were under my breeches. I was too embarrassed to strip down completely. He put a spare shirt on me so that I was clothed. He took care of my legs and then he picked me up. He carried me over to a bigger fire. I had been given food and ate as fast I could without being gross or looking like a half-starved animal. I was thankful that everyone was polite enough not to stare directly at me while I ate or I would have been too nervous to eat as cleanly as I managed.
A quick glance around told me that there were several fires around the campsite, but this seemed to be the main one. There were many elves around the campfire and all were looking at me interested out of the corner of their eyes. I looked back down unable to take their glances. As soon as I had finished eating and had sat back in Glorfindel's lap, they had a meeting.
They discussed were I came from, what happened to me, who I was, and what they were going to do with me. They had tried to ask me questions, but I didn't answer any, too intimidated by them. Glorfindel shared a blanket with me after the meeting. I listened to his heartbeat and breathing at he slept. At least, I think he was asleep. I didn't want to move and risk waking him up to find out. I felt awkward and at the same time, strangely at peace.
I swear I had an inner child trying to take over my actions. This caused me to feel confused and unsure how I should act. What if I said the wrong thing and was left behind? What if they found out that they made a mistake and that I was originally a human? What would happen to me after I had reached this Imladris place? I was walking on egg-shells and it had robbed me of my voice.
Nórui the eighteenth of the Year 2002 during the Third Age
In the morning, I was given some sweet fruit for breakfast and tiredly ate with Glorfindel. The elves around us switched between packing up for the journey and ogling at me. At the moment, I was too tired to care. I hadn't been able to fall asleep until late last night, uneasy about what would happen to me. I had come to the conclusion to not cause any trouble and to stay out of the way. Not that I would've tried to cause trouble in the first place. Maybe if I was unobtrusive, they won't toss me in a river the first chance they get. I shuddered at the disturbing thought. 'Think positive. Think Positive.' I mentally chided myself.
Glorfindel had seen me tremble and had sent me another sort of sad look. He had finished eating first and seemed to be thinking about something. "Small one," Glorfindel said addressing me, "I will also have to pack away supplies onto Hissael for our…journey. It will only take me a moment, can you wait for me?" He studied my face while my tired mind processed what he said.
Glorfindel did say our journey, so that meant I was included. Especially since he asked if I could wait for him, so that means they weren't going to suddenly leave me behind. Besides, didn't I say that I was going to be as unobtrusive as possible? Saying no counts as being obtrusive… I nodded and took another bite of my fruit. He gave me a small smile before heading over to our bed roll and putting it away. Turning away from him, I watched the other elves and their activities. I spotted an elf from last night's meeting, the one called Cael.
He was tall, much like the other elves, but he seemed especially tall. Glorfindel was one of the few that could rival Cael's height. His hair reached slightly past his shoulders; it had a flaxen tinge to it, giving it a straw-like appearance. His skin had a healthy grow to it; it was almost a tan, but not quite. In fact none of the elves I had seen thus far had any hint of a tan or even any sunburn.
They all had a fair complexion to them.
Cael was slender; but not lanky, nor did he give the impression of being a gangly teenager. He had the look of a model. He was muscular and looked very fit. He also seemed pretty friendly, someone I would like to have as an older brother. I have never had any one to fit the older sibling description or someone who was an older sibling. I was always the eldest; whether in my group of friends or my family, I was always older. His eyes were green like the forest around us.
Next to him was another elf from the meeting, but I never caught his name though. His hair was bottle blond, only it was a natural color on him. His skin was a nice peachy color and his cheeks were rosy. He seems to be the type of person to be almost always in a good mood. He was a head shorter than Cael, but looked to be strongly built.
His hair was longer than anyone else in the group of elves; it was even longer than Glorfindel's, which was near his mid-back. His eyes were slightly narrow, like he had a devious plan to play on someone. He gave the impression of a childish trickster or until I saw the quiver of arrows that is. Now his narrowed eyes told me that he was a master archer that shot great distances and that nothing got past him when he was on duty. He had gentle, sky blue eyes.
Further away from the duo was another elf. His name was Ruean and he had the first watch last night after the meeting. He was the only elf I saw with white, almost silver, hair; all the rest had varying degrees of blond or brown hair. He seemed calm, quiet, and almost introverted, although he got along quite well with the rest of the elves.
He was about an average height for most elves and hair that reached around his shoulders. It was pulled back into a pony-tail and out of his face. He was pale faced compared to the rest and I started to wonder if he was an albino. He wore a dark tunic to even out his bleach colored hair. When I saw his eyes, I was a hundred percent sure that he was albino; they were a pink-ish red hue.
Next to him were two elves, one of them I knew was called Hulian. He had strong, proud features; high cheek bones, a royal nose, and the like. He was one of the taller elves and he seemed to carry himself with a sense of purpose. His eyes like the bottle blonde elf were narrowed; only instead of a prankster master archer, he was like a school yard teacher that made sure to catch troublemakers. His long, dirty blonde hair was in a neat and orderly braid. He had broad shoulders and a medium build from what I could see. His eyes were a stormy grey.
The other one whom Hulian was talking to, I recognized as the second elf I had mistaken for an angel. I didn't catch his name either. He was easily the tallest elf in the group and well built too. In elven terms he was probably considered burly, because none of the other elves were as big as him. He surpassed seven feet tall easily and was probably seven feet eight inches or something.
His hair reached his shoulders, but it was pulled back into a short pony-tail. His hair was a light brown that bordered a soft caramel color. When he made a gesture with his hands while explaining something in response to Hulian, I saw that they were calloused. His eyes were a dark, navy blue.
There were many others, easily twenty, but I couldn't explain them all. Most were blonde, around six and a half feet tall, hair that reached their shoulder blades, and had some shade of blue eyes. Most wore green tunics with varying shades of brown breeches. Many of the horses were the same way too. The horses they had were all solid colors that sometimes had white stockings or stars on their noses.
There were no black horses; just browns, whites, reds, and grays. I painfully thought of my Grandma's fat, old, black horse called Herbie. He was the only horse I ever rode by myself. I only rode him a few times when I was around seven years old, but that didn't last very long because of my allergies. Which made me wonder why I didn't start reacting yet, because I was completely surrounded by horses; not that I was complaining or anything.
By now I had finished my fruit and was picking at the nail polish that had most faded from my fingers. There were only small speckles of it here and there on my nails; most of it was on my toes and a large amount of it was gone there too. Nail polish typically had a life span of less than a week on my finger nails because I was almost always doing something busy with my hands or I was picking at the polish.
It was a habit that my mama always hated, it was a nervous tic that I was never able to get rid of. The nail polish I had on now was black with silver glitter in it; it was my favorite because it reminded me of a really starry sky or the Milky Way Galaxy. A shadow loomed over me and I looked up to see Glorfindel.
"Small one," He said after a pause which consisted of studying the paint on my nails, "it is time for us to leave." I nodded and he reached down to pick me up. I got on my feet and was hoisted into his arms. I was too out of it to notice this before, but it was really high off the ground from my perch. If I fell from this height, I'd probably get brain damage. Glorfindel set me on Hissael and told me to hold on when Hulian and the person next to him called Glorfindel over to them. I didn't catch most of what they were discussing, but it got the gist of it.
Glorfindel was the leader of this group, or hunt or whatever it was called, and was usually the one who lead it. However, since I've joined their merry little bandwagon, I've shied away from everyone else except from Glorfindel, and because of this I am riding with him. They, meaning Hulian and the burly elf, were worried that there was a higher risk of something happening to me if I was in the front of the hunting party.
They were suggesting that Glorfindel, and consequentially myself, should ride in the middle where it was the safest. Glorfindel agreed to this plan with little to no complaint. Another question was posed to Glorfindel: who would then be leading the band, if not Glorfindel? Glorfindel apparently chose the burly elf, because Hulian walked back with Glorfindel and mounted his horse beside Hissael.
The last traces of the fires and the elves' presence were erased and everyone mounted on their horses. The burly elf took off first and the rest of the company followed. Where they were going and how they knew they were going in the right direction was beyond me. If I was the one leading, we'd get lost so many times it would a whole new meaning to the definition of 'lost.' It's a good thing I'm not in charge.
We have been riding for hours now and I have no clue of what we're looking for. If I knew, I would help look for it; that would certainly make the time run a bit faster. Mentally singing the song, 'One hundred bottles of pop on the wall' isn't very stimulating. The only other form of entertainment is listening to the elves gossip. They were worse than little old ladies believe it or not.
They talked about how fair an elf named "Arwen" looked, how an elf named Lindar was working on a new ballad, if an elf called "Lord Elrond" could actually read minds, and so on. Eventually talk shifted to how I came about and that no one has got a word out of me yet.
I didn't know if I should be flattered or horrified that I was interesting enough to be gossiped about. Glorfindel simply settled on being annoyed at them and after awhile snapped at them. They got sheepish and embarrassed looks that plainly said that they didn't realize that they were being over heard. Another way I passed the time was doing braids in Hissael's mane. I finished about ten of them before we stopped for a break.
When Glorfindel set me on my feet, I immediately sat down, and stretched my legs. It felt wonderful after hours of sitting on a horse so long that your legs fall asleep and then wake up twice. Flopping on my back, I laid down on the grass and smelled the sweet air around me. If you only lived in the city all your life, you could never have tried air like this.
My grandma, Laura, and I live in the country, so we smelled air like this every day. I never got tired of it and the smell of it now reminded me of home. Closing my eyes, I was filled with a sense of nostalgia as I listened to the sounds around me. People talking and laughing as they moved around, horses whinnying and neighed as they grazed, and birds as they let out their calls; all of it was familiar and comforting to me.
Feeling like a little girl again, I forgot when and where I was exactly. Reaching my arms above my head, I rolled around on the ground and down the dip in the forest floor. My descent only lasted a few seconds and I ended up on my belly with my face buried in the grass, but it was worth it. I let out a laugh remembering when my little brother Kenzo did the same thing and rolled into a pine tree down the big hill in our backyard. I missed my family so much.
I thought of my mama, Grandma, Grandpa, Kai, Kenzo, and then…Laura… The laughter died on my lips and I was filled with a sense of misery.
Glorfindel was disappointed with the audacity of the other hunters in the patrol. They were gossiping in the presence of the subject of their gossip; worse yet, the elfling was listening to them as they spun more and more ludicrous sounding tales about him. Finally, he (Glorfindel) had lost it and told them to stop fooling around. They had the sense to look embarrassed about being caught and looked anywhere but Glorfindel and his charge. The child seemed to study them for a brief moment longer before turning his attention to Hissael's mane.
He fingered it for a minute or two before he started to do some small braids on it out of boredom. Glorfindel was slightly amused, because he knew that had it been anyone else and had they not been riding; the horse would have been indignant and nippy. Ten braids had been incorporated into Hissael's mane; but before Glorfindel could make a comment on how beautiful the elfling was making him, Elorne signaled for everyone to take a break.
The break was more for the child's benefit than for anyone else, for the hunters had ridden horses for longer than four hours without a break.
Now would be the ideal time for the child to have a quick snack and a bathroom break. Glorfindel dismounted the horse before lifting the child down and off Hissael. To his surprise, when he set the child down and let go; the elfling immediately sat on his rump and started stretching out his little legs. The elfling spread out his legs, reached forward with his hands, and folded down to the ground, extending before sitting back up.
He relaxed for a bit and flopped down on the forest floor. Hissael also watched the whole thing before snorting, shaking out the braids in his mane, and wandering over to the other horses. The elfling closed his eyes and breathed deeply several times seeming to savor the scent of the forest.
Glorfindel took a seat next to the elf-child and studied the small form next to him. He was shocked when he first found the child, looking everything but alive in that clearing. He was ashamed to have drawn a bow against the poor elfling, mistaking it for something dangerous before getting a good look at him.
He assumed the child was dead, before checking the pulse, and having his dark blue eyes look so intently at him. Glorfindel had immediately taken the child back to camp and had made a second mistake; this time thinking that the child was of human kind.
He had taken the child to Elorne who was the most experienced at healing out of the whole company. When Elorne tried to take the child away from Glorfindel so it could be healed, however, it protested. The child had uttered a strangled sound and then opened those eyes. Those eyes that begged him not to leave them with some other stranger. Even though Glorfindel himself was still technically a stranger too; the child didn't want to be parted from him.
Glorfindel complied and told Elorne that he would tend to the child himself. Glorfindel wasn't expecting to see the state of the child's back. Much of it had been skinned severely; there had been splinters, a chunk of wood embedded in it, and a strange black band of cloth that was loosely wrapped around its chest. The cloth had to be cut off and a rapid healing cream was applied.
He had not noticed the ears at first, when he had taken off the hat, and supported the child while the extra large boots were slipped off. He had only noticed them after seeing a flash of silver and noting that the child's ears were pierced, having silver hoops on them. Only then did he fully look at the ear and realize just what, or in this case who, he had found.
His exclamation of surprise had brought about Elorne's reason to approach Glorfindel and the child, causing him to be given a shock too. After Elorne had left to inform the rest of the patrol, Glorfindel introduced himself to the elfling hoping to get a name. Not a peep was uttered from the mouth of the child, and even during the meeting when the child was asked questions; the child never spoke except to occasionally whimper.
Glorfindel was troubled, elflings were cherished amongst the elven community; births were always immediately reported and celebrated. So why hadn't there been any news about the elf-child that had easily been around for over a decade and a half? Even more alarming, where were his parents? Why had the child been found in a nearly starved and injured state?
Most importantly, why won't the child speak or even smile? It was not natural. No elfling should be so skittish of their own kind; no elf in their right mind would ever be any intentional cause of harm to them, even if they weren't in their right mind the elfling wouldn't be anywhere near them. So why was he like this?
There was movement from the object of his musings, the elfling had raised his arms above his head and rolled away from Glorfindel. Then the child rolled away again… and again… and again. He had kept on rolling, when he reached a small slope…which he rolled quickly down. Glorfindel watched worried at first when the child hadn't made any sound from where he was, face down on the ground.
That was when he heard it, a giggle.
The sound made his heart leap and a smile come on to his face. Maybe the child was just shy and he had worried for nothing? Sadly, the elf-child's laughter didn't last, ending as quickly as it came. A sigh came from the nearby elves disappointed that the child's merriment stopped so suddenly and ended so abruptly.
The child rolled over again and sat up. His hair was mussed up, sticking out at random intervals, and had pieces of grass stuck in it. He had reached up and was fixing his hair when he started sneezing. Rydre, one of the young elf-lords in the patrol, had ambled to the elfling. He laughed and started helping the small child saying, "With all the sneezing you are doing; someone must really like you and is talking about you right now." The child stared at Rydre surprised and blinked a few times.
"Oh, where are my manners? My name is Rydre, small one." Rydre had finished picking out all the grass and had taken a seat beside the child. "I am one of the many archers in this hunting party. Have you ever tried shooting an arrow before? When I first learned how, everyone had to duck and take shelter from my waylaid arrows. No one was safe from them, not even myself in some occasions." This gained a small snort of laughter from the elfling.
Encouraged, Rydre continued with his small and humorous anecdotes, getting a giggle here and there for his efforts while the child ate a piece of fruit that Rydre offered him during one of his stories.
Elorne approached Glorfindel with a small bag. "Now that the child is occupied and you are free at the moment, I need to talk to you."
"What would you wish to discuss with me at the moment, Elorne?"
"The strange belongings of our charge," Elorne tossed the bag onto Glorfindel's lap. "And what will happen when we reach Imladris."
To Be Continued...
Translations: Although I think the translation in itself is pretty obvious; the place Imladris is also known as Rivendell.
Explanations:
*The Hunt is the fictional hunting party that goes around killing orcs. As far as I know there is nothing in canon that mentions it, but it sounds like something that elves and men might do on occasion. A hunt could typically last anywhere from one month to several months. The planned hunt that Glorfindel was leading was supposed to last for another few weeks or so; but since they now have an elfling in their possession, they're going to try to go through their rounds as quickly as possible.
*Honor Rae thought Glorfindel was an angel, because she assumes she is dead. She probably now assumes she is in wonderland.
*Eating with a whole bunch of people staring intently at you is a hard thing to do; especially if you are as shy as Honor Rae.
*The inner child is the natural instincts of a young elfling trying to break through. Fanfictions that star an Elfling!Harry Potter tend to have those "urges." Fans of these stories know what I am talking about.
*Nail polish, as far as I know, has not been invented yet. So naturally Glorfindel would be curious enough to pause in his speech to study it on he nails. (Especially if she draws attention to the paint by picking at it.) Since there is no nail polish, Honor Rae will make do with regular paint when she can find it.
*The stretch Honor Rae was doing, was a yoga straddle stretch pose while bending forward to the ground. It's almost like a head-to-knee pose, but with both legs stretched out.
*The black band of cloth is Honor Rae's strapless bra. They hadn't invented those yet.
*It's an old wives tales that states if you sneeze several times someone is talking about you. Whether it's for good or for bad is all up to how you choose to take it. In Korea it's when the inside of you ear itches.
Thoughts: Thanks to mayumi mizuki who ever so kindly pointed out that I got the age wrong. It's supposed to be the third age instead of the second age. My mistake. The short chapter is brought to you by the sweet stopping point, causes by the important and dramatic discussion.
Congratulations, you are a wizard Harry.