Hi guys!

I want to thank Celridel for her immense help in editing this story.

In this chapter something important is going to happen between Laura and Glorfindel. What will it be?

Waiting for your reviews, guys!


Chapter 58: Revelation

"This has been an excellent year," Galdor said to his other fellow Elf-lords once the Lord of the Fountains finished singing. "As excellent as the song Ecthelion just gave us."

The Elf Lords were gathered in a room on the west wing of the palace. Three of the four walls were nearly covered with large oval windows. The floor was highly polished wood, and in the center of the room was a smooth white table, its top made from marble, its legs crisscrosses of black lacquered wood. The chairs were made from a reddish wood, with grapevines chiseled into the sides.

In the corner was a cream-colored settee, embroidered with green silk leaves, as real as if they had fallen there in spring and been absorbed by the cloth.

The Elf-Lords often gathered here when they were off duty, all save Duilin, who was too restless for any one place, and Maeglin, who savored his own company best of all.

"Without a doubt," Penlod agreed. "The Válar have smiled upon us lately. More little ones have entered this world in this year than in the last decade, and now a Prince has been born."

"And we cannot forget Duilin's twins," Egalmoth added, smiling.


Flashback

Egalmoth had been in the stables, currying his horse, Faervelben. He loved the quiet, uncomplicated company of horses above all others.

Footsteps sounded behind him, soft on the hay-strewn floor. Egalmoth turned, and hardly had time to recognize the face when he was seized in a rough embrace.

Puzzled, Egalmoth returned the hug, then pushed Duilin away from him. The young Lord's eyes had been incredibly bright, his face glowing with an untamable joy.

"Wish me joy!" Duilin exclaimed, clapping Egalmoth on the shoulder. "Oh gods, I can hardly comprehend. I am to be a father, Egalmoth! Can you imagine!"

Egalmoth looked at his friend, stunned. He had never seen this day coming. "I wish you all the joy in the world!" he said. "And when is the announcement?"

"Today at dusk, at the Swallow Roost. And where is Penlod?"

"I believe he is with the King." Egalmoth began, but before he finished, Duilin darted from the stables, running with the breathtaking speed that characterized him.

Egalmoth smiled at Duilin's retreating back, delighted to see how truly happy his young friend was.

His wife had followed him from Ennor and had survived the Helcaraxë, but they had no children. Neither of them had ever thought of such a thing, perhaps because neither of them could justify bringing a child into such a world. But that did not matter. Gondolin was safe, and the child would live in a place of peace and beauty.

End of flashback


"And who would say that Duilin would have the best of both worlds?" Rog said, smiling. His own wife had remained in the West, but he still shared his young comrade's happiness.

"It is said that the Válar favor fools," Glorfindel offered, and there was general laughter.

Egalmoth shook his head, his face mild with amusement. "I have seen the children. The daughter, Sulneth, has inherited Duilin's taste for weaponry, while Glastor has gotten his mother's love for painting."

"I can only imagine how their house looks," Rog returned, grinning at the image called to mind.

"Less than tidy," Ecthelion agreed. "And we cannot forget our Eärendil."

"How can we, when he has the run of the palace?" Galdor retorted. "The High-King obeys that child's every whim."

There was another ripple of laughter. Eärendil was now a year old and doted upon by his grandfather.

Ecthelion smiled. "But he is a strong lad, fair as an Elf-child, and he gladdens my heart."

Glorfindel raised his glass of wine. "Ecthelion, you will be the best friend our little Prince can ask for."

"Indeed," the other Lords echoed, imitating the example of the half-Vanya. Ecthelion smiled gratefully.

There was a brief silence in which everyone seemed to be lost in thought, but this was broken by Lord Penlod who turned to Glorfindel, who was absentmindedly watching the dusk.

"And you, Glorfindel? Have you ever thought about getting married?"

Glorfindel looked at him, his face and voice nonchalant. Only Ecthelion, he knew him perfectly, could hear the studied lightness of his words.

"I cannot say I have, Lord Penlod. I am afraid I have always winked at marriage, and love in general."

"And why is that?" Egalmoth asked, leaning forward curiously.

Ecthelion intercepted the conversation smoothly. "Glorfindel is young, and has so many things to accomplish, Love is not a priority."

"Indeed," Penlod agreed. "I must admit, at times I still consider Glorfindel but a stripling."

Glorfindel's golden eyebrows collided indignantly. "Oh, come now, Lord Penlod. I am not the youngest of the Lords. I have several centuries on Lord Maeglin."

"I do not count Maeglin one of us," Rog said, crossing his sturdy arms over his broad chest.

"Hush," Penlod said, silencing him. "He is the Prince and deserves our respect."

"I give my respect to those who earn it. Maeglin is a skilled craftsman and a silver-tongued politician, but that does not balance out the way he hounds his cousin," Ecthelion said.

Galdor the peacemaker held up his hand. "My Lords, surely there is something more interesting then Maeglin to discuss?"

Their conversation continued for several hours until Rog left to take his place on the Gates. The gathering began to dissolve, and one by one the Lords left to arrange the affairs of their Houses.


Glorfindel eyed the books that his second-in-command presented him with and decided tomorrow would be soon enough to deal with them. He left his House quietly and headed towards the Training Square to see if Laura was there. Occasionally she rousted her recruits from their rest to continue training. If she wasn't there, she would be on the West wall. Most of the nights they spent there, talking, getting to know each other, falling more and more in love.

"So that is why you are slinking around."

Glorfindel turned and smiled at Ecthelion. "I am not slinking. And what do you mean?"

Ecthelion arched a single eyebrow. "It hardly takes a wizard to solve this puzzle, Glorfindel. How goes fares your peerless paramour?"

"I do not have one," Glorfindel said.

"Has she rejected your affections?" Ecthelion asked, putting his hand on Glorfindel's shoulder. "You do me a disservice, friend, by thinking I am blind and simple."

Glorfindel smiled again, shaking his head. "Ecthelion, no one thinks you are blind or simple. And no, she has not rejected me. But that is because I have never told her of them."

"You are hardly a coward, Glorfindel. What is stopping you?"

"She is," Glorfindel said. "She thinks of herself as a miscarriage. A mistake. If I said I loved her, she would never believe me, not if she sees herself like that."

"And how do you see her?"

"The most beautiful creation the gods ever made," Glorfindel said instantly, earnestly.

"Then tell her that."

Glorfindel ran a hand through his long golden hair. "She would never believe me! For years, I have been trying to convince her that she is more than an experiment, more than a misguided error. It pains me to the core to hear her call herself an experiment. I want to take that burden away and make her happy, Ecthelion, just like she has made me happy, even without knowing it."

"Tell her how you feel."

"She will reject me!"

Ecthelion raised his hand. "I am not finished! Tell her what you feel every time she calls herself an experiment.

"Glorfindel, tell him how you feel ..."

" Didn't I tell you she's going to reject me ...?"

Lord Ecthelion raised a hand to signal him to be quiet.

"I'm not done," he said, "Tell how much it pains you. Surely will have changed enough to listen to you: after all, you did not fall in love with Hwa-Young or X-23."

"No," Glorfindel admitted. "I fell in love with Laura Kinney, the most beautiful woman you will ever find."

"My friend, you really are in love," Lord Ecthelion said with a sad smile. He did not understand this and did not think they were right for each other, but if the One had designed it, then Gondolin's Darling and the former assassin could be happy.

"And do you think that is sufficient?" Glorfindel asked.

"I do not know Laura Kinney well enough to give you a definitive answer, but I think that yes, in the end, it will be."

"Ecthelion, do you think Laura loves me?" Glorfindel asked in a voice so low Ecthelion could hardly hear it.

"Why do you ask?"

"Perhaps I am frightened."

The Lord of the Fountains put his hand on Glorfindel's shoulder, encouraging him instead of telling him what he thought. "I am not a fortune teller, but I can tell you one thing. If you truly love her, you must fight for her, and the day that you win, you will both be very happy. Have a blessed night, Glorfindel."


"You're late," Laura remarked, once Glorfindel had made his way to the Training Square. She clapped her hands, dismissing the exhausted recruits.

Glorfindel smiled. "A thousand apologies. Would you like to sleep, or shall we go to the wall?"

"I don't need sleep if you don't," Laura answered. "A pleasant conversation with my BFF sounds good."

They made their way to the western wall, standing side by side and looking over the merlons, out into Tumladen. Moonlight silvered the scene, and a thin layer of mist carpeted the grass.

"When will these recruits finish their training?" Glorfindel asked

"In two weeks. You know? This group has actually been okay. The previous ones mostly found that they would rather garden than fight."

"You are a demanding trainer."

"Not anywhere close to how I was trained."

"They wanted you to be an assassin, Maistalda," Glorfindel said gently, looking at her. "You are not training assassins. You are training soldiers."

"Maybe you're right," she said, turning back to admire the landscape.

"Besides, those gardeners are improving the city in their own way."

A thin, mocking smile traced Laura's lips. "You are way too kind. I think that they are losers. They wasted their time and mine."

"You cannot judge them so harshly, Maistalda," Glorfindel said reproachfully. "All Elves in Gondolin yearn to improve and beautify their city. You cannot judge them for desiring to be soldiers. Dreaming cannot be denied to anyone."

Laura's smile changed, became sad. "Believe me, it can be denied. Much more than you can imagine."

Glorfindel chose his words carefully, aware he was walking a narrow, and slippery path. "It is true, there are those who are cruel to deny someone their dreams. But Life always gives a second chance."

"You have a good point," she murmured.

There was a long silence, only broken by soft gusts of wind, making Laura's long hair flutter. After training, she undid her braid and let her hair fall free. By now, it was nearly down to the small of her back. Glorfindel watched her, nearly ensorcelled. To him, this woman was more beautiful than a dream, more beautiful than the daughter of Finarfin or the Celebrindal.

"What?" Laura suddenly asked, turning around when she felt his gaze on her. "Why do you keep looking at me like that? Do I have mud on my face or something?"

Glorfindel smiled tenderly, a smile he had never given her before, and Laura felt a chill run down her back.

"I was just admiring how well my epessë fits you, Maistalda."

"The strength part is true," Laura said with an indifferent shrug, although inside she was trembling.

"Beauty also applies, Maistalda. You are more beautiful than you know, inside and out."

Laura laughed, a short, grainy laugh. "Me? Beautiful inside and out? There are beautiful assassins, but they are only beautiful outside. And I am not one of them."

"I do not know of that, but I know you and that you are very different from the woman I met decades ago. And that change made you beautiful inside, and outside."

Laura raised a mocking eyebrow. "Whatever you say. Have a blessed night." She turned, starting towards the stairs.

"Maistalda!" Glorfindel called after her.

"Glorfindel, I don't know what happened to you, but you are acting very weird. We'd better talk sometime else," she replied without turning around.

"Laura Kinney, please come back!" he exclaimed in such a tone that Laura turned, but with her arms tightly crossed over her chest, an attitude that he recognized as defensive. If he were not careful, she would go on the offensive.

"Glorfindel-" she began.

"Laura, why do you not believe me?" he interrupted her, moving towards her slowly as if she were a bird he did not want to scare away. "I have known you for years, and I have realized you are no longer Hwa-Young and even less X-23. You are Laura Kinney and you are my Maistalda. Laura, why do you not believe me? Do you think I would lie to you?" he asked sadly, stopping a few steps away from her.

Laura lowered her gaze and took a deep breath.

"No, you wouldn't lie to me. I know that I can trust your honor," she answered in a low voice. "But I also know that when one looks for the good in people, one can convince themselves they see it, even where there is none. I am no longer an assassin or a spy, but I am what I am, and that is an experiment, someone designed for bad things." She turned around. That was the moment that Glorfindel was waiting for. In a leap, he crossed the two steps that separated them, and without thinking twice he took her by the shoulders, forcing her to turn towards him.

"Experiment? Experiment?" he said in a broken voice. "Don't you see, Maistalda? How much damage you do me every time you call yourself with that cruel word!" Laura looked up at him, her eyes wide. Glorfindel was crying, and she felt something in her core shake, as she had never felt before. She remained motionless, her green eyes fixed on Glorfindel, who saw that, at last, the barriers that guarded her were completely lowered. He saw her sadness, but he also saw an emotion that made him shudder, because it was the same emotion he felt every time he saw or thought of her.

"Maistalda," he said, in a choked voice. "I beg you not to think of yourself that way anymore. You are not an 'experiment', you are, you are, you are ... you are Wilwarinda. As long as you think that you are an experiment, neither you nor I can be happy."

Laura lowered her eyes, trying to keep the tears back. Seeing Glorfindel cry from the pain she had caused him made her ache with misery. A sob clogged her throat, and she swallowed hard, trying to make it slide back into her stomach. She looked up, daring to finally look straight into his eyes, which were filled with a hope that made her quiver. But thanks to the magnificent self-control that had been instilled in her since her earliest childhood, she held his gaze and said in a voice as calm as she could make it. "Forgive me. I did not know the damage I was doing you. I will try not to think about myself as an experiment and will try to... make you happy." The last three words came from the depths of her heart, bypassing her mind to enter the night air, free of conscious thought and utterly true.

Glorfindel gave her a grateful and much calmer smile. "I know you will, Maistalda. After all, you are a very strong person with a temper of steel, but you are also Wilwarinda: capable of changing from the darkest and most dangerous person to one with a kind and thankful heart."

Laura nodded slightly.

"Have a blessed night," she murmured. And having said that, she disappeared into the shadows.

Glorfindel watched her go without moving from where he was. He was sure that he had managed to move the young woman enough for her to change her mind, maybe not now, but this was the pebble that began the landslide.

However, the greatest thing of all, and the greatest joy he had ever felt, was his discovery, the revelation that she loved him too.


Waiting for your reviews, guys!