Chapter 6
When they had finished their supper and packed away their cutlery, Glorfindel and Ereiniel remained on the blanket. The golden Elf lay on his back with his head in her lap while she wove a crown of flowers.
"I don't understand how one determines which wine is best paired with a particular food," Glorfindel said as he handed her another bluebell. "I know Lindir says that white wines are best served with fish and poultry, and red is better with meats and cheese, but I have been perfectly content with any wine with any food."
"I have never given it much thought myself," she replied. "I had always assumed it was just part of an elaborate course setting."
"Although I will say that I do prefer pear wine with my bread and cheese," he said, twirling one of the long-stemmed flowers as he thought.
"Seaberry, white grape, and blueberry are the only wines that grace our table back home," Ereiniel said as she finished her crown. "Though I drink whatever is available, I do prefer one of the three. I typically stick with the same type of wine through an entire meal."
"So I have noticed," Glorfindel said, reaching for the bottle that lay by his side. Much to his chagrin, it was empty. "Meh, pity."
"Did we drink it all?" she asked as he tossed the bottle aside.
"Unfortunately so Meldanya," he said, sitting up. "We still have many hours til dawn and I for one do not like dry evenings."
Ereiniel grinned as Glorfindel took the crown she made, placed it upon his head, then kissed her.
"I will go back to Imladris, procure more spirits for us, then return to you posthaste," he said.
"Bring me a blueberry one back please," she said. "I would greatly appreciate it."
"For you, anything," he said, giving her one last kiss before rising. He crossed over to Asfaloth, who grazed a short distance away, and mounted him. "I shall only be a short while," he said before galloping away.
Alone, Ereiniel fell back against the blanket and stared into the night sky. Without Glorfindel to keep her mind distracted, her thoughts swirled over the happenings of the day. She hated matters of diplomacy, for she was not as tactful or well-spoken as Elrond or her father. They always knew what to say and how to say it.
Though she represented Lindon as a third-party to ensure the realm supported the end compromise, she feared she spoke too much in favor of the Númenoreans. The wood needed for their ships would assist Lindon in ferrying supplies and troops to greater distances should Sauron arise again. Ereiniel had done her best to make them understand that it was for their safety that the trees were being cut down, and not because of any malicious intent towards them.
However, every time she spoke, the men of Tharbad would stare at her and often refuse to respond. Ereiniel was so convinced they hated her for her position that she didn't bother to speak for the majority of the meeting. Each side was ill-tempered and more than once arguments broke out, some that Elrond even had difficulty stifling. She didn't want to contribute to the hostility.
She took a deep breath and slowly released it, briefly closing her eyes to listen to the sounds of the valley around her. A light breeze rustled the trees, and she could hear the songs of nightingales. Crickets chirped, an owl hooted, and silk ruffled in the grass beside her.
Ereiniel opened her eyes and sighed.
"I'm not surprised Elrond sent you," she said as she sat up. "You can tell him that I'll only be gone til morning, I won't return before then."
"Lord Elrond insists that you return at once, Princess Ereiniel," Erestor said as bowed politely. "He has given me strict orders."
"Has he now?" Ereiniel said as she stared at the Elf in the ethereal field, who looked to her like a misplaced shadow. "I don't suppose I can make you a counteroffer?"
"Nay Lady, unfortunately Lord Elrond has promised something even you cannot give," Erestor said as he stepped forward. "Besides, your presence would no doubt be appreciated by those from Tharbad."
"Really now?" Ereiniel snorted and reached for the bottle of wine. Remembering it was empty, she set it back down with a huff. "What could my presence do but anger them?"
Erestor stopped beside her and raised a brow. "Anger them, milady?"
"You saw them," she said, gesturing with her hand. "The way they looked at me and never really said anything after I spoke."
"I saw nothing to indicate they hated you, milady," Erestor said as he sat down beside her on the blanket. "Quite the contrary, they beheld you with reverence."
"Really?" she asked, narrowing her gaze. Though Erestor could be off-putting because of his blunt nature, in this case she welcomed his unabashed honesty.
"You are the King's daughter and a war hero, they didn't want to speak in defiance of you is all," Erestor stated. "One of your greatest faults is that you cannot adequately judge others' perceptions of you because you believe they are always comparing you to your forbearers. However, to Men at least, they see you as their equal."
"I don't feel like it," Ereiniel said, looking off in the distance at nothing in particular. "If I were as valiant as Fingon, or as wise as Turgon, or had the foresight of Idril, Celebrimbor might still be alive and Eregion might not have fallen."
Erestor did not miss the choking sound in her throat. Obviously, the mention of her beloved kinsman still hurt.
"There was nothing you could have done to prevent what happened," Erestor said, realizing that Celebrimbor's death still lay heavy on her, even all these years later. "The fault belongs to Sauron alone. Besides, there are many here who wouldn't be alive if it weren't for you."
"Perhaps," she responded with a whimper. "I just can't help but wonder how many more I could have saved if I had made different choices when I look back upon it all."
"You should not plague yourself with unnecessary thoughts," he said. "We could dwell forever on the past and wonder what could have been, but you must trust that all things happen for a reason."
"Thank you for that, Erestor, but I fear your words are crashing on me like water on rock," she said. "Please do not take offense, but being in the position I am, the responsibility of what happened falls in part upon me. I was one of Celebrimbor's closest friends, I know I could have made him see reason if I wasn't so afraid of hurting him or losing his friendship—"
"I doubt there was anything you could have said or done that would have made him heed your father's warning," Erestor said, cutting her off. "I did not have his confidence as you did, but I know that Lord Celebrimbor wanted nothing more than to be Fëanor's equal as a smith. His pride and ambition blinded him, there was nothing you could have said or done that would have deterred him."
"He was a stubborn one wasn't he?" Ereiniel huffed as she pulled at the grass. "It's no wonder the dwarves liked him so."
"Don't forget that he at last perceived Sauron's intentions and hid the Three," Erestor said. "It is because of Celebrimbor that we were not enslaved and able to thwart Mordor's invasion."
Ereiniel thought back on those troubled years and felt a mixture of fear, anger, and sorrow fill her chest. The horrors she witnessed as Sauron's forces marched across Middle-earth and decimated all that stood before it kept her awake most of the time. Her mind was often plagued with memories of slaughtered innocents, the screams of the dying, and the smell of burning flesh.
It was getting harder and harder each day to keep them from assailing her mind, and it took several quiet minutes before she was able to bring her thoughts back to the present.
"You certainly have a way with convincing people to do what you want, don't you?" she said, only then understanding what Erestor was doing. "You think this heart-to-heart will make me want to go back with you."
If Erestor was ruffled by this revelation, he didn't show it. Ereiniel had always been eager to please and wanted everyone to like her, and exploiting a person's traits had always been one of Erestor's specialties. By giving her advice and lending a sympathetic ear, Erestor knew that Ereiniel would see this as a favor that needed to be repaid. And repayment would be returning to Imladris.
"The evening is growing late and the men of Tharbad will wish to retire soon," Erestor said, without admitting his intentions. "You may bid them goodnight and Elrond will be satisfied if you remained with him in the Hall of Fire in that short amount of time. When that is concluded you may return here with Glorfindel if you choose. I was bidden by Elrond to return you to Imladris, but I wasn't instructed to keep you there."
Ereiniel sighed, knowing she had been defeated long before she realized there was battle going on. "Let's go then, that way we can perhaps meet Glorfindel and tell him what we're doing. I don't want him to think I was stolen away from him."
"As you wish," Erestor rose and offered his hand to Ereiniel.
He helped her stand and directed her to where his horse stood silently waiting for them in the meadow. Ereiniel walked with Erestor, thinking about what he said in regard to the payment Elrond promised him. She grinned when she thought she figured it out.
"You know, Lindriel likes picnics too," she said, as if initiating a pleasant conversation about their mutual friend. Ereiniel too could make subtle suggestions and Erestor deserved the reprisal.
She almost laughed when she saw his back and shoulders stiffen, and wondered if his pale face had suddenly become a vivid shade of red. He cleared his throat and smoothed the dark robe over his chest before speaking to her over his shoulder.
"I don't know what you are insinuating, milady," he replied.
"I was making no insinuations," she said with an unconvincing, innocent smile. "I was simply stating that Lindriel likes picnics, and she does have a favorite spot on the northwest cliff near the lighthouse. She often paints there and should be no trouble to find. There's a picture of it above the fireplace in the children's corner of the library."
Though he knew very well the Princess was planting the suggestion in his mind, he nonetheless filed it away for later use. Once he returned with Ereiniel, Elrond would send him to the High King's city of Aearellond as his representative. There was an upcoming summit regarding their defenses against Sauron, and he could use it as an excuse to converse with Lady Lindriel about prehearing tactics.
He now worried if his infatuation with the Princess' long-time friend was obvious to everyone.
Just as he was about to assist her onto the horse, both he and Ereiniel turned to see a rugged form burst through the trees and run headlong towards them. The horse reared as a stocky orc came flying towards them, his exceedingly large cleaver in his hand.
Erestor moved to shield Ereiniel —an instinctive act to protect one's leader— but she stepped forward with her hand outstretched. A sudden blast of bright blue light nearly knocked Erestor over as Ereiniel aimed a defensive strike against the orc.
Globuk himself had no idea where he was heading as he raced through the meadow. He was just trying to get as far away from the valley as he could when he suddenly saw two figures in his path. In his blind panic, he didn't realize that it was two Elves who stood in his way, and he unknowingly barreled towards them.
The next thing he knew, there was a blinding light, a crack like thunder, and what felt like a stone wall hit him. The last thing he remembered was being unable to breathe, then there was nothing. Absolutely nothing.
Erestor recovered himself when Ereiniel's light faded, but stood in wide-eyed awe of the power that Fingolfin's line possessed. He had never witnessed it that close before.
Ereiniel cautiously walked forward to observe the dead orc on the ground.
"Where in all of creation did this come from?" she asked before looking towards the direction the orc came from. To her horror she heard the bushes rustle, and what sounded like scruffy voices and the clanking of metal pots. The noises suddenly withdrew.
"There's more of them!" Erestor cried as he swiftly mounted his horse. "It's best we gather a guard before hunting them, we don't know how many are out there."
Ereiniel silently agreed as she swung herself up behind him. She'd feel much better if she had a weapon too, Glorfindel had ran off with the only one they had.
"Hurry! Let's alert the Tra-la-lally guard and hunt them down!" she urged, making Erestor roll his eyes and groan as they galloped back to Imladris.
"Will you please stop calling it that?"
