"… 'Let those who cursed my name, curse me still, and whine their way back to the cages of the Valar. Let the ships burn!' "

My brothers were staring up at Minuial, whose voice was shaking from reading. "Why, Minnie?" They asked in unison. "Why is he burning the ships?" Ron asked when Danny quieted down, his voice quavering from distress. They had been enraptured by Minuial for almost an hour now as she read to them tirelessly while I helped the boys clear off the table and add a few extra leaves while Mom and Môrwen cooked together.

She cleared her voice and swiped at the corner of her eye. "Fëanor was a very angry man." She said, her voice sounding thick with emotion. "And he was so furious that he did not care who he hurt, so long as someone else was suffering with him."

He crossed his arms. "I don't like him." He declared.

"And why is that?"

"He's mean!"

"Little one, his prized treasures are being stolen away from him. He is angry and desperate. Perhaps with thought, you could understand his fury and his rage."

"Shut up, Ronnie!" Danny commanded before staring up at Minuial adorningly. I hid my laugh behind my hand and earned a sharp look on Minuial's part. While she may be a jerk sometimes, I had to live with her, and she was taking care of my newfound brothers, so I wiped the smirk off and concentrated on setting the table, which the boys seemed unable to do.

"She's good." Mom said from next to me as she worked on a huge pot of spaghetti.

I shrugged. "Eh, she's okay." I muttered. Minuial gave me an unreadable glance as she continued to read.

"I'm really glad you called, Eleniel." Mom stated without looking up from the steaming pot. "I used to try and call you, you know. Back in the first days. But your father always told me that you hated me and didn't want to talk to me."

I cleared my throat awkwardly. "Well, he was right about that." I said, not trying to make eye contact and wishing fervently for Rinion or one of the twins or part of the J-2 duo to come barging in with a problem for me to fix. "And I think I had a right to."

She sighed and finally turned to face me. "Ellie, I-."

The front door banged open and closed. "I'm home!" A man yelled from the front hall. Saved by the mysterious man.

"Daddy!" The little twins screeched, scrambling towards the man's voice. Minuial closed the book and hurried past me to where the others were hiding, her head ducked and the book tucked protectively under her arm.

"Ah, boys! C'mere!" I stared at my hands nervously as I heard footsteps coming towards us. The next moment, a man appeared with the boys on his hips, laughing loudly with a broad smile. His laughter made me want to smile and laugh with him. He was taller than me by about two heads, so his only rival for height was Glandur, and even then I think he had the Elf beaten by a good three inches. He grinned at my mother and leaned to kiss her cheek. It struck me that I'd never seen a man look so lovingly at his wife. "Hello, beautiful." He said before spotting me. He raised an eyebrow. "And hello, uh…?"

"Lawrence, this is my daughter from Warren, Eleniel." Mom answered for me, staring up at him adoringly. I'm stuck in a love song. Help. "She and her friends have to do a school project and they wanted to use our house as an example for family structure and the like."

"Well, welcome." Lawrence grinned again and set the boys down, extending his hand. "My home's your home, and if you're Giselle's daughter, then you're mine too. Lieutenant Lawrence Camp, at your service." He took a dramatic bow. "Though I also answer to Dad, Papa, Looey, Camp, and Asshat."

"Lawrence!" Mom smacked him with a towel. "Mind your language!"

"What's an asshat?" The little twins asked in unison.

"It's what your father is, sweetie."

"See? Works like a charm." He glanced over my shoulder into the dining room. "And hello to your silent friends! Are they going to join us?"

Elladan and Elrohir appeared out of thin air next to me, one on each side. "Elladan and Elrohir, at your service, sir." One of them said, mimicking his bow. "Though we answer to Dan, Ro, and Ellahir. We both answer to the last one."

"You guys are too cheeky for your own good." I found myself laughing and introducing everyone in turn. Lawrence just… made me want to laugh. Maybe he wasn't such a dick after all. "These are my friends, Rinion, Minerva, Jared and Jensen. Those are Rinion's grandparents, Garret and Molly."

We ate dinner (which seemed to puzzle my Elven charges) and by the end of the night, the little twins were tiring themselves out with Jared, Jensen and the older twins. Lawrence was laughing with Glandur over some red wine that Mom had dug up, and Môrwen was gossiping with Mom and Minuial, leaving Rinion and I to sit there awkwardly and sometimes smile at each other.

"Ellie!" Lawrence grinned, wheeling around to face me. "C'mon, let's put the kids to bed."

"With all due respect, sir, I believe that Eleniel isn't quite as good with children as she thinks." Rinion gave me a smirk, and I punched his arm.

"I am too, you jerk! And I'll prove it!"

"That will be the day." He raised his eyebrows and laughed when I shoved his shoulder and stood up. He and Lawrence exchanged looks, and the next moment I was swarmed by the twins.

"Ellie, Ellie, read us the story that Minnie was reading us!" Ronnie demanded. I could hear Minuial choke from the dining room.

"Nuh-uh, that ain't a bedtime story!"

"Ron, use proper English." Lawrence snagged a book from a bookshelf as we entered the boys's room. "Will this do?" They cheered and rocketed into their matching beds, and in record time they were looking up at us expectantly. Lawrence grinned at me and handed the book to me. "The folded page is their favorite." He said.

I stared at the battered book of fairy tales and looked back up, knowing that I was flushing. "Sir, I don't think that I should-."

"I hear 'sir', and I look for my Sergeant back in Afghanistan." He cracked a grin. "Go on. You're their big sister, you should be the one to read to them. They'll love you forever."

Big sister. I smiled, then sat on Dan's bed next to him and opened the book to the aforementioned folded page. Immediately, my eyes widened and the air was pushed from my body at the glossy tapestry-style picture and at the title.

"The Tale of Lord Glandur The Brave and His Love, Lady Môrwen The Fair." I read aloud slowly, then glanced down at the kids, who nodded. I wet my lips, then read the story.

.

In a land far, far away, there lived a young lord named Glandur the Brave. He was one of the Aelfin kind, and was immortal and fair above the race of Men. He was the right-hand man of the king, as well as a friend of the Queen and the Princes. He had fought in many wars, and had defeated many great foes, and his face held scars to show his conquests. He was renowned and respected all across the realm as a hero and a force to be reckoned with.

One day, however, a rider arrived with word from a neighboring kingdom, requesting the best tutor they had. Another young Lord and Lady were coming of age, he said, and they were to have the best education that the lands had to offer. The king sent Glandur, as he was the bravest and the wisest of his guard.

After many months, Glandur arrived in the new land and met the boy and girl he was to tutor. The was the son of an old battle mate of Glandur's, and the two men greeted each other with warmth and happiness; the girl was also the daughter of an old friend, though he had passed away, and Glandur treated her with the respect he knew that her family deserved. Glandur began to teach the young lord and lady, whose names were Rinion and Minuial, everything he had to offer.

One day, a rider arrived with a hood over their head and a proud emblem held high above their head. They were from the third kingdom from the north, and was the best tutor from there. Then they threw back their hood, and revealed the most beautiful woman that Glandur had ever seen. He immediately fell in love with her.

But she was to marry another man, from her land. She had been raised betrothed to him as an alliance between houses. Her name was Môrwen, and she was the handmaiden of the Queen of the Golden Wood. She and Glandur tutored Rinion and soon became friends. Môrwen had also seen war, though she was the one who would pick up the dead and heal the wounded; nonetheless a noble job.

By the time that summer turned into fall, Môrwen and Glandur fell in love with each other in a secret affair. Môrwen promised to run away with him and to break her betrothal. "I love you more than any prince or king under the sun." She promised him. "I would rather have you as a penniless fisherman than a man who I do not love as the king of the world."

But Glandur did not want to cause another great war if he stole her away, so he soon sent her back to her home, telling himself that it was for the best. Glandur married a woman who resembled Môrwen in face, but not in soul, and had a pair of twins, a son and daughter. He heard that Môrwen had married her lord and hoped that she was happy.

Then another war arose, and Glandur sent away his wife and children to be safe. He and Rinion's father donned their battle armor and rode into the fight. But while he was fighting, the enemy army rode and found his family, and kidnapped them.

The next day, they brought them to the front line before the battle, and as Glandur watched and was unable to do anything, they ripped out his wife's throat and killed his children as they screamed for their mother and their father.

.

I stopped and took a breath to keep my voice from choking up, my eyes closing. I couldn't breathe. Oh God… Glandur…

"Keep going! It's the best part!" Dan kicked me, though his eyes were filled with sleepy wonder and adoration. I smiled at him shakily, then continued to read, no matter how much it hurt.

.

Glandur fell to his knees when he saw this, and fought harder than he'd ever fought before. But for all of his fury, he was gravely hurt and was felled. The army trod over him and left him for dead, not even realizing that he had fallen.

Môrwen had heard of the war and had ridden as quickly as she could to Glandur's aid, letting her husband march to war as he would please. He arrived in the camp to the news that both her husband and Glandur were missing and were likely dead. Môrwen keened and mourned, not for her husband, but for Glandur, the man who she truly loved.

She rode back to the battlefield to see the carnage with her own eyes. She saw Glandur and pulled him from the wreckage. He was almost dead; it was a wound of the soul. She did not know how truly he loved her, but she stayed with him and she nursed him back to health, until he opened his eyes and saw her sitting next to him. She told him everything that had happened since they had last seen each other, how she had always remained faithful and had insisted on keeping her marriage symbolic. He was so moved by her fidelity that he professed his undying love to her and swore to protect her until his dying day.

They grew old and married, and they swore that nothing would ever come between their love again. They lived happily ever after. The end.

.

I closed the book and saw that Lawrence had left the room. The boys were fast asleep. I was glad; I stood up, went into the bathroom, and I cried.

.

Okay. I have no excuse.

But here, have an extra-long chapter! And you got some backstory! I really loved writing this. And Minuial is reading the kids "The Silmarillion". Nice, light reading, huh? Please review! I'm not dead, I promise!