Heheheh, apparently I grossed some of you out completely!  You think that was bad?  You should see the film they show you during Lamaze classes!  *runs and hides*

      *                   *                   *                   *                      *                   *

Return to Valinor
By: DLR 2003

           *                   *                   *                    *                      *                  *

Chapter Six

Elrond looked up as Lindir entered the room.  He very slowly moved his sleeping daughter from her present position snuggled against his chest to the blanket lined crate beside her brother, taking extreme care not to disturb either infant.

He gratefully took the dry clothing Lindir handed him and pulled his breeches on.  Lindir opened his mouth to speak and Elrond held up his hand in caution, directing the other elf's attention to Culurien, who was asleep as well.

They moved into the hallway, closing the bedroom door behind them.  Elrond pulled his shirt over his head.  "Well?  What have you found?"

Lindir looked grim.  "Very little, Lord, as I thought.  Only a small sack of grain which may or may not prove to be edible."

Elrond was troubled.  "You and I can do without food for many days, but Culurien cannot.  She must replenish herself if she is to provide nourishment for the children."

Lindir nodded as quick steps brought them to the kitchen door, both of them very aware of the storm still raging outside.  "This is it, Lord," he said, indicating the burlap sack on the table. 

It had been sliced open and Elrond pulled out a handful of grain, holding it up to his nose.  "Musty, but not rotted."  He sighed.  "See what you can do.  It may not be pleasant tasting, but that cannot be helped."  He raised his eyes to meet his servant's.  "There is nothing else at all?"

Lindir did not need to reply, the expression on his face spoke volumes.

Elrond crossed to the window.  "There is no sign of the storm abating."

"If our aborted journey back to the village was any indication," Lindir observed.  "The road will be an impassable sea of mud in numerous places."

Elrond was thoughtful.  "Which a single rider on horseback could probably avoid."

"I shall leave at once," Lindir offered.

Elrond placed a hand on his arm.  "Stay, I was not hinting you should ride out in this weather.  Occupy yourself with the waybread, we are not desperate yet."

Lindir tilted his head and paused, suddenly.  "I believe I hear crying."

Elrond raised an eyebrow.  "From here?  Would that I should have such keen elf ears."

Lindir's eyes twinkled.  "You may come to regard that as a blessing."

"Indeed, yes."  Elrond smiled as he walked back to the bedroom.

                        ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Culurien rolled her eyes.  "I think that at this moment I would sell my soul for a stack of clean diapers."

"Mmmm," Elrond agreed, in the midst of cleaning a tiny bottom.  "Thank Elbereth Lindir found these drapes."

Culurien smiled wryly at the colorful row of little square curtain sections hanging on a line by the fire.  She sighed.  "Oh, to have a nursemaid as well." 

Elrond looked with concern at the dark circles under her eyes.  "You must eat, please.  It has only been two days, but with the demands the babes are making on you, it appears as though it has been a week."

She arched an eyebrow.  "You are saying I look terrible?"

Elrond paused in his reply as he picked up his freshly diapered son.  "Of course not," he began with caution.  "But nursing a child requires a great store of excess energy.  You are nursing two, so therefore your body needs even more replenishment, not less.  Your intake of nourishment has been nearly nonexistent." 

She opened her mouth to protest and he held up his hand.  "Yes, I know it tastes bad.  Force yourself, for the sake of the children, please.  Lindir will go into the village for fresh food as soon as the weather clears."

Culurien sank onto the bed and held her face in her hands.  "I am so sorry.  I am trying, please believe that.  I do not mean to be such a terrible mother."  Her words choked in her throat and she began to cry.

Elrond quickly sat on the bed and put his arm around her, stroking her back as he pulled her tightly to his chest.  "It is I who am sorry, please forgive me.  It was not my intention to scold you."

She put her arms around his neck and wept with abandon, giving free rein to her overly charged emotions.  Elrond laid the baby down on the bed to be able to embrace her completely.  "Everything will be fine, do not fret so."

"I am sorry," she repeated.  "I cannot seem to help myself."

He closed his eyes and attempted to soothe her with his gentle caress.  "I understand, it is all right, be calm.  This situation will not last forever; we will have help ere long."

She settled closely against him, bringing her worries under control once more.  The infant beside them made a gurgling noise as he looked up at his parents.

Culurien smiled through her tears.  "And what do you wish now, little one?"

"For you to eat," answered Elrond with a wink.

            ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

On the fourth morning, the sky finally cleared and Lindir prepared to go into the village.  Elrond looked at him seriously.  "It will be rough going."

Lindir snorted his agreement.  "Undoubtedly."

Elrond placed a gold coin in his servant's hand.  "Please take your time and be careful, it will not help us any for you to fall into a ditch.  Food is the first priority, naturally, worry for the cart later."

Lindir nodded and pocketed the coin.  He moved to depart and Elrond laid a hand on his arm.  "I cannot express thanks enough for all you have done for us, not only for the last few days, but for all the years past."

Lindir glanced back at him, his eyes suddenly brimming with emotion.  "I would gladly die for you, Master Elrond," he whispered.  "Surely you know that by now."

"Yes."  Elrond's own eyes became glassy.  "I do know it."  He gave his servant a quick embrace.  "May Elbereth guide thee."

He stood in the doorway for some time after Lindir had departed.  The sky was clear, but the heat of Anar was not strong enough to dry the muddy roads and fields.  He closed his eyes and tried not to think about what would happen should Lindir be unable to fulfill his quest.  "You worry too much," he chided himself aloud, shaking his head with a grim smile.

            ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Elrond lifted his eyebrows and addressed his wife.  "What was that you said?"

The only answer forthcoming was the sound of chewing and some muffled indecipherable mumbling.

"I suggest you swallow, and then make a fresh attempt at speech."

Culurien reached for a drink of water to aid in the transfer of the contents of her mouth to her stomach.  "Eat, why are you not eating?"

"I have," said Elrond with a grin.  "You have been too busy to notice."

She shook her head.  "You could not possibly have eaten much."

Elrond patted her hand.  "I am fine, worry not for me.  My only concern is that you have enough.  And you as well," he added, turning to Lindir.  "Sit and eat."

Lindir accepted the offer gratefully, sitting down at the small table and reaching for the bread.  "I employed a person in the village," he said in between bites, "to fix the cart and bring it along."

Elrond nodded.  "Very good, thank you.  How was the road?"

Lindir swallowed.  "As we surmised, impassible in many places.  It may take a few more days for the cart to be able to come through."

Elrond grasped him by the forearm and thanked him silently with his eyes.  "The food we have now should last until the cart is repaired and the road navigable."  His words were met with silence as his companions were too busy eating to respond.  His daughter though, had no such activity to occupy herself and she loudly proclaimed this fact to all within hearing distance.

Elrond picked her up with a smile and a soft caress of his lips against her tiny face.  "What ails you, Tithen-sell?"*

She snuggled up beneath his chin and her muffled sobs gradually subsided.  "Well, not hunger, after all, I surmise."

"Thank Elbereth," Culurien muttered between bites.

Elrond tilted his head down for a quick olfactory inspection.  "A change of attire is apparently unnecessary as well. Perhaps just a little love, is that what you need?"  He rubbed his hand soothingly across her small back and sighed happily.  "My little Elanna, you are a gift indeed."

Culurien looked up and met his eyes.  "You have decided, then?"

Elrond smiled.  "The decision was made long ago after the reception of a certain dream, do you not recall?"

"I do indeed, although one may change one's mind many times in the course of a hundred years."

Elrond shook his head.  "Nay, not in this instance.  They will remain Elanna and Elethîr."

Culurien held his eyes for a long moment.  "And they are truly the most blessed children on Arda to have such a loving father as you."

Elrond returned her gaze and blinked as his eyes became shiny.  "That is indeed the highest compliment you could ever pay me."

            ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

He walked through the empty halls, moving aimlessly from room to room.  He thought he could almost hear singing; ghostly echoes of times long past, but he knew that it could not be, all had departed; only he remained to haunt the vacant passageways.

He paused in his wanderings before a large mural and his attention became fixated upon it.  A shudder passed through his body although the room was not cold.  He pulled the edges of his robe tightly together as he ran his fingers through the wayward strands of his loose hair.

As he gazed at the painting, the plaster and tempura became flesh and blood in his mind's eye.  His breathing grew labored as he witnessed with horror once more the deaths of Gil-galad and of Elendil.  The heavy weight of the ring he bore kept him immobile on the ground as he lifted his eyes to see Isildur wield the sword of his fallen father with a flash.

His eyes widened in shock as Isildur drove the point of his sword through Arwen's heart.

"No!" he screamed in anguish and frustration, unable to move to her aid.

Arwen clutched her chest and then held her bloody hands out to him and sobbed.  "Help me, Ada, please help me!"

She collapsed into his arms, her spirit departed from Arda instantly as her life's blood stained the dusty black rocks. . .

"Nooooooo!!"

"Mellhîr!"  Culurien shook him forcefully.  "Wake please!"

Elrond opened his eyes, gasping for breath.

"A dream," she told him.  "You were dreaming."

He sat up and hugged her tightly to his chest.

"Gil-galad?" she guessed.

"Nay, not really."  He sighed.  "Arwen."

Culurien stroked his hair.  "Do not fret for her, for you know she is happy in her choice."

He leaned his head on her shoulder.  "I know in my heart that she is well, it is my mind, my rationale, which persists in reproaching my actions, wondering if there was anything else I could have possibly done."

Culurien sat back and contemplated him.  "You dream this out of worry for us, do you not?"

Elrond closed his eyes.  "Yes, I suppose that is the reason, although dream interpretation is not a skill of mine, as you well know."

Culurien smiled and kissed his cheek.  "You worry overly much, Elrond Peredhil."

He looked up and managed to chuckle.  "Indeed, so I have been told."

            ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

*Little child; daughter. f