Chapter 18:
Author's note: In this chapter, Ethina says some things. What she enunciates is what is written, and the translation is enclosed in parenthesis (). It is best to read her sentence and then go back and read the translation; that way you are getting the effect of the sounds of her words, and all of the vowel sounds are soft unless otherwise indicated.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"Owww m ow má" a pause, "Eowww mowmá" another pause, "Owamá…" Came the soft voice of a child's whisper.
Élharma listened for a while to its almost musical intonations. Cee had been trying to get Ethina to say Élharma's name for some time. From the tone of her soft voice, Élharma could hear the little girl's distress and frustration. She tried again, "Ĕw ow ma"
Cee's voice softly cut in, "Keep trying: El… Har…Ma." There was silence.
Élharma opened her eyes.
It was a few hours before dawn and Cee was lying on her side, propped on one of her arms, next to the sizzling fire, with Ethina lying next to her. They were the only ones awake.
The sky was an inky bluish black, clear as glass. The stars shone like diamonds against the velvet darkness, causing their elfin skin and hair to appear almost silver.
"I like the name Emma." Élharma said
Cee jumped slightly, a shadow of panic flitting across her fair features before her eyes fully registering the voice as coming from Élharma.
She grinned and scooted closer to the maiden, "I hope we did not wake you." She whispered, "Ethina could not sleep."
Élharma shook her head, "Not at all."
They situated themselves so that they would not disturb any of the exhausted men; each lying on their side facing the other, with Ethina between them.
She looked at the tiny form that now clung uncertainly to Cee's tunic. The petite girl had skin so fair as to rival that of the elves, and a head of straight, fine, almost translucently blonde hair. Her eyes were green, framed in perfectly lashed lids. Much to Élharma's surprise, the miniature ears held a slight but definite point! Élharma looked questioningly at Cee.
The woman laughed nervously, "My husband is far more accepting of my heritage than others."
Élharma laughed slightly, "As he should be."
The child's face lit up, "Daddy. Daddy an momma an Edina (Ethina) do (go) owm (home) now."
Cee smiled and kissed the creamy head, "Yes, we will be going home soon. Today, hopefully. All thanks to Élharma and these other, wonderful elves that helped mommy come and get you."
Ethina lay still for a moment, silent. Then, she rolled decidedly over to Élharma and gave the maiden a big, wet, drooly, sloppy, kiss on the check. "Taint (thank) u (you) Emma."
They all giggled quietly. Not quiet enough, though as several of the men began stirring.
"I see you have made yourself right at home" Came a voice from behind Élharma
That voice. She reveled in its silken intonations and perfectly enunciated words. It sent shivers up and down her spine. How was it, that every time Haldir spoke, he elicited such a response from her?
He regarded her with open awe. She was absolutely perfect. Even after a night's sleep. Her hair, which was usually kept in a tight braid, cascaded down her back (which was turned to him) to the top of her belt in heavy curls, slightly mussed. In the light of the night, her creamy skin shone as with an inner light and her hair went from golden to a brushed silver. She regarded him over her shoulder with eyes that swirled with a pale gray-green mist.
He moved to lie behind her. She smelled of lilacs and honeydew melon, with a hint of moonbeams. Delicious. Playfully, he wrapped his arms around her waist and regarded Cee and Ethina for the first time that morning from over Élharma's shoulder.
"You had better watch who you are kissing, little one." He said protectively.
Ethina smiled and said, "No. Emma MINE." A little indignantly
He frowned, feigning a look of hurt, "But I want her." And pulled her even closer.
"No. Emma my pend (friend). Tu (you) do (go) 'way (away)" She grasped Élharma's hand and gave it an insistent tug.
Élharma grinned and said, "Ethina and Haldir can be friends." To the little girl.
"Dadeew (Haldir) ée(be) pend (friend)?" The child asked, cocking her head to the side as if Élharma had just had an ingenious epiphany.
Cee jumped in, "Yes, Ethina. Haldir is your friend. He helped mommy too, he is an elf."
Ethina's eyes lit up, "Dadeew(Haldir) tome(come) 'an det(get) me pom (from) da (the) ba' (bad) pace (place)"
The adults nodded.
"Dadeew(Haldir) ée (be) my pend (friend). My eowf(elf) pend(friend)." The girl's face broke out in a big, toothy grin and she walked up to Haldir and kissed his cheek as well, leaving a wet mouth print on his skin.
A man approached, "And what about daddy? Doesn't he get a kiss as well?"
She looked up at him, screwed up her face and blew a big, impish, raspberry in his general direction.
The man cocked an eyebrow and seated himself beside/ behind his wife before he grabbed the child playfully and pulled her into an embrace.
Ethina grinned and wrapped her arms around his neck, her pudgy fingers winding their way into his hair. She puckered her lips and loudly kissed one cheek and then the other. Having finished, she sat purposefully in his lap and pointed to Élharma, "Daddy, da (that) id(is) Owdowma (Élharma) buu (but) te (she) tay (say) I tan (can) taw (call) hew(her) Emma."
The man smiled and offered his hand, "It is a pleasure to meet you, Élharma. I am Korodan, Curiel is my wife and this little stinker (he kisses Ethina's head) is my daughter."
Élharma shook his hand and smiled, a little surprised that he could translate Owdowma into Élharma.
Ethina grins and interrupts, "An (and) dat(that) id (is) Dadeew(Haldir)," Pointing
Korodan nodes slightly, "It is a pleasure, as always to meet one of my kindred, Haldir."
Haldir dipped his head regally, "As I am pleased to meet you, sir."
Haldir drops his head to rest lightly on Élharma's shoulder, savoring the feeling of her warm skin and soft hair against his cheek.
Ethina crawls back to lie in her mother's arms and Korodan stretches out next to Cee in much the same way Haldir was holding Élharma, wrapping his arms about her waist and pulling her close to his body.
"I thought I would never see this gorgeous woman again," He said to Haldir with a sigh.
"What happened?" Haldir asked cautiously
"After we were captured, they bound us and forced us to run under the cover of night for Mordor. It took three days to reach the place that you found us at. During the day they kept us in caves, tied up, of course. After we arrived, they put us to work mining metals." Korodan replied.
Haldir was having a little bit of trouble concentrating on Korodan's accounts, as Élharma had snuggled back against him even more. Now, her whole body was pressed against his own in a most alluring manner. Her soft, yet firm muscles fit him perfectly; it was as if their bodies were made to correspond together.
"…As the men died over time from overwork, those foul creatures would eat them!" Korodan was saying vehemanently, either oblivious to Haldir's growing lack of attension, or just ignoring it.
Haldir squirmed uncomfortably, trying to relieve some of his physical discomfort, but only managed to make himself more distracted.
"I will be eternally grateful that you came when you did, for I am afraid that Ethina would have been their next meal." Korodan spat, catching a strand of Haldir's attension.
"You have a wonderful wife. It took more courage than many of the races in middle earth have, to do what she did." Haldir said.
Cee blushed and giggled. Korodan kissed her ear before replying, "I know. That is one of the reasons I married her."
"Shhhhhhh." Cee whispered mischievously, "Ethina has finally fallen asleep."
Élharma grinned wickedly, "That is right, Haldir. Tone it down so that you don't wake the poor child up." She said as she leaned back against him, her delicious body pressing into him in a most tantalizing fashion.
For a moment, he could not speak. He could not breathe, he could not think. He could not even persuade his eyes to focus. He felt Korodan watching him humorously.
"I must be more tired than I thought…" He finally managed to gasp.
"Yes… you must be." Korodan smirked.
He knew that Élharma was just being her malevolent, wicked self; and he knew that he realistically should get some more sleep, but for the life of him, he was enjoying every moment of this torture.
Élharma, serene as always, asked, "Tell us about yourself, Korodan. I would like to know, even if Haldir here (jabs him in the ribs with her elbow) falls asleep."
"I am of the heirs of Elendil through the line of my uncle Mallor. Mallor was my mother's half- brother through her father's line. My mother's mother was the daughter of Elured. Her name was Ellan,"
Élharma interrupted, "So you also have an elfish heritage."
Korodan smiled and continued, "My mother married the second son of Minalcar."
"What? We are in the presence of royalty? Cee forgot to mention that." The maiden continued teasingly.
"My wife doesn't like to make herself seem more important than she deems herself. I assure you, she is! She is, through marriage, an heir to the line of both Godndor and Rohan."
Cee giggled, and Korodan gave her waist a playful squeeze.
The sun had begun to peek its rays over the edge of the horizon, casting warmth and light upon the landscape, bathing it in an array of color.
"Looks like we had better get going, if we want to get you men home today!" Came a voice from the other side of their encampment. "Time to get up and face the day!" Lirahall said boisterously, skipping, dancing, and walking from one lump on the ground to the next. "Home you go today, not on a tray I say, but in a pile of hay!" He rhymed in a silly, singsong voice.
The men slowly began to sit up, stretching and yawning. Soon, they were on their way, walking with high hopes towards the capitol city of Rohan.
The landscape was breathtaking: Rolling hills bearing the lush green of late summer, trees scattered over the plains. Birds sang, frogs croaked, and sounds of life enfolded the company in their joy. Here and there, one could hear the notes of a horse's whinny, and the screech of a bird-of-prey. Every so often, one of the men would break out in song, leading the rest in a lively melody.
As they traveled, it was in the same degree that the hearts of the men rose, did the hearts of elves began to fall. Not that they weren't happy for these men to finally get home, it was not that at all; they were ecstatic for these men. The problem was the one question, one thought, one idea that troubled their hearts and gnawed at their minds. The question: What kind of reception would they receive from the lord of Rohan?
It had been many centuries since any elves had set foot in this blessed and beautiful country, and it was becoming painfully evident that in their absence, men had come to dislike all things elfish. Given, there were a few, like Korodan, that bridged the gap between the two races, but for the most part, the men gave wide breadth to the elves.
Haldir noticed that in the outlying farmlands, the farmers and the farmers' families had watched joyfully as the prisoner's passed, playing and dancing in the streets. It was only when these farmers saw Haldir, Lirahall, and Élharma that their faces became hard, almost angry and they would usher their families back into the safety of the indoors.
Élharma felt uncomfortable, she knew that she did not blend into the group of men; she understood that they stood out from the prisoners. It made her nervous. The looks that she received from some of the people that they passed made her uneasy. Looks of anger, hatred, fear. She did not like to be feared, let alone hated. She wanted to be back in the comfort of Rivendell, or Lothlorien. There, at least, she blended in with her surroundings. She did not let this show. She held her head high and let the familiar mask of impassivity fall over her features, covering her belying disquiet.
Uneasily, Lirahall kept his hand resting on the hilt of his sword. It gave him a sense of unrest and apprehension: being in a country that was so unfriendly to elves. He could keeth, just like all other elves, and he did not like what he sensed. There was amnesty here. It ran deep in the hearts of men.