Eladrien pulled her brother and sister along after her.
"I'm sorry," she panted at their escort guard, "Must we go quite so fast?"
He muttered something under his breath but slowed his pace somewhat.
'I'm very tired, Ela. Can we sleep soon?' Eladrien looked down to see Alare staring up at her, her beautiful eyes marred by the purplish smudges under them. Eladrien smiled reassuringly at her, and again, moved the two along, as they were still lagging behind their escort.
Around her, the wealth and magnificence of these Elven creatures, so unlike her own Kind, were on display. Beautiful works of art, statues, paintings, and carvings adorned the halls and alcoves. Eladrien had the impression of ethereal beauty unlike any she had seen before. It was beauty that truly aspired to the beyond, to the grace of the Valar and the beauty of the light and stars. Here were the true keepers of the faith, for surely no one could create such beauty unless they wholly believed in goodness and purity.
They halted outside a solid door with Elvish runes carved into the oak. The guard opened the door and led them inside.
"Prince Legolas will send for you. Till then, you must stay in these chambers."
"Diola lle,' Eladrien replied and the guard bowed and left them alone.
She looked around. The window was thrown open, and the sunlight danced merrily about the room, playing with the light breeze that pushed her hair back from her face. It was a large chamber, with a desk below the window and a large bed in the centre. Light curtains of voile hung from the bed, billowing gently in the breeze. The room was bright and airy and lifted Eladrien's sprits considerably. A door to the left was ajar and through it, Eladrien could make out a bathing chamber. She glanced down at the two forlorn creatures still holding tightly to her hands.
'Well, this is not so bad.' She smiled, 'We will make good use of our environs. Go and bathe, Enier, lle holma ve'eden!' she said with a laugh, ushering her brother into the bathing chamber. She then helped Alare to bathe, since the little Elf was practically asleep. There were clean white garments at the end of the bed, made from the softest of materials, and Eladrien wrapped both up in them, before settling them into the big bed.
'Ela?' Enier's sleepy voice came into her head, though his eyes were closed, his long lashes fanned out on his cheek.
'Yes, melamin?'
'Will we be safe here?'
She brushed her brother's hair off his forehead, 'We will be just fine. I will take care of you, I promise. Trust me.'
He smiled, his eyes still closed, 'We do. Always'.
She kissed him, 'Quel kaima'.
She went back and bathed for a long time, trying to soak the tension out of her stiff limbs. Her brother's implicit faith in her was comforting, but also worrying. She felt completely out of her depth. The Elves that had once dwelled in the dangerous forest of Mirkwood were renowned for being insular and mistrustful of strangers. How was she to connect to these Elves, whom she didn't know and had no connection to? She could think of nothing, her mind was simply blank. Her mission was decided; she had to see King Thranduil. To leave the Oropher without completing this task was impossible. But, she had not expected to come up against the will of Prince Legolas. Eladrien sighed, and closed her eyes. He had been battling the evil of Middle Earth before she had even been born. She had sneaked into his territory, with two young Elves, and attempted to evade his guards. He had every right to be distrustful of her and she was ill equipped to fight him. But to tell him of her reasons for being there would be going strictly against her orders.
Eladrien took the last white tunic and dressed herself, before going to stand in front of the window. She could think of no way around it. The Prince would not let her see his father until he had first been apprised of the situation. Therefore, she would have to tell him. She rested her head against the window frame and sighed. This charge should not have come to her. She was young and inexperienced and knew not what to do. She felt as if she was searching around in the dark, with no guide or light to help her on her way. Her mother was lost to her, and she had no one but the two small Elves in the bed, who were wholly dependent on her. To make a wrong move would be dangerous to them also. Eladrien's hand tightened involuntarily on the window railing. If anything ever happened to Enier or Alare she would never forgive herself. Ever.
She looked out at the scene on display outside the window. Rolling lawns of immaculate grass, green and healthy, stretched out into the distance. Everywhere, Elves walked along, enjoying the peace, while younger Elven children ran around, giggling and laughing.
What must it be like to have no worries or concerns? To feel safe and secure. That must be a great comfort. Never have I been lucky enough to feel this, apart those short years of happiness in Rohan. But those days are long past now.
She turned away from the window and lay down next to her sister on the bed. Now that they were asleep, she could finally think about their mother. Eladrien was extremely anxious about her. She had been taken so suddenly, by the Power, which had now turned completely bad. What would happen to her? What if Eladrien couldn't get to her in time? Eladrien pushed that idea firmly out of head. Aladwen was their beloved mother and she simply couldn't give up hope.
Exhausted, Eladrien closed her eyes. As always, the Voice was in the back of her mind, its insistent, persuasive tone louder than normal, as if sensing her weary state. It was something she was used to living with now. It was there constantly; calling her; beckoning her, sometimes sweetly, sometimes forcefully. But she refused to listen carefully because she knew only too well what happened if the Voice was given attention. She drifted off into a dream-filled sleep, where dark figures threatened her from every side and her mother called to her, desperately. Yet, no matter how fast she ran, her mother was lost to her.
~
Eladrien woke up some hours later to find Alare and Enier alert and awake. And fighting with each other. Seeing them back to their usual behaviour was a relief after their unnatural silence of the past few days. They appeared to be squabbling over the best position at the window, which afforded an expansive view of the Palace gardens. Enier, bigger and stronger, had settled himself there, and was ignoring his little sister's attempts to push him away.
'Please, Enier! Let me see!' she cried, her little hands raining ineffectual slaps on her brother's shoulder.
'Auta miqula orqu, ' he snapped at her. Eladrien could see the telltale quivering of Alare's lower lip, so she quickly got out of bed. Both Elves turned round and bounced over to her, full of excitement and energy.
'We saw other Elf-children in the garden, muinthel!' Alare babbled away, her earlier upset forgotten, 'May we go and play with them?'
Eladrien laughed at her enthusiasm, 'Not just yet, Alare. I must first talk to the Prince, then we will see.'
Alare rushed back over to the window, craning her neck to see the finely dressed Elves in the courtyard, 'They do not look like us at all! They wear bright colours and long, flowing garments. They will surely be seen if they go into the forest.' Alare observed.
'You are right,' Eladrien joined them at the window, 'but here, they have nothing to fear here. These borders here are well guarded and they know they are safe.'
Alare stared at her sister; her eyes big and round, 'So, are we safe here as well?'
Eladrien nodded, 'Safe for the moment, yes.'
Enier leant his head against the window, 'I hope Nana[1] is safe wherever she is, too.'
Eladrien was saved from answering that by a swift knock on the door. She opened it to find the guard from earlier standing there, "His Royal Highness, Prince Legolas, wishes to speak with you."
She nodded. 'Enier, look after your sister. I will be back soon, ' she called to him, following the guard down the hall.
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Hey peeps, I've put the Sindarin translations as footnotes, I hope this makes them clear…I know it's a bugger checking the bottom of the page but I hate putting them in the story, it feels a bit unprofessional somehow. Sorry, this chapter is a little bit angsty and uneventful but I wanted to try and get the readers behind Eladrien, who is not in a great position at the moment! Worrying about her mother, brother and sister…dealing with some Voice thing and coming up against Legolas all in one day…life is hard.
Hope you enjoyed…please press the review button and let me know either way, I'd love to know any of your thoughts!
Amelie xxx
Diole lle : Thank you
Lle holma ve'eden : You smell like a human
Melamin : My love
Quel kaima : Sleep well
Auta miqula orqu : Go kiss an orc
Muinthel : Sister