I really liked the way my mother told my father and brothers about Windarion. She was always so creative.
* * *
It was a calm cold day in the middle of Yule. The sun was shining but it seemed just as light for the chill overtook the warmth.
Celebiathion and Lossenethir were in their room cleaning up for dinner.
"Why do you suppose mother wants to have a small dinner with just us?" Lossenethir asked our older brother.
"Because she wants to send you away to live with Lord Elrond," Celebiathion said simply as if it was nothing. Lossenethir looked horrified. "I'm only joking, 'Thir."
"Don't joke brother. It is sometimes more hurtful than one intends," Lossenethir answered curtly.
"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to hurt you," Celebiathion said quietly then he hugged Lossenethir.
"Who said you hurt me?" Lossenethir laughed and pushed his brother away. Celebiathion stuck his tongue out at his brother.
"You're wicked!" Celebiathion said in a mock hurt voice.
"No I'm not, well just sometimes," Lossenethir said trying to contain his laughter.
"Sometimes?" Celebiathion laughed. "If there was ever one so modest it would be you, Lossenethir."
"Really?" Lossenethir laughed. "Well let us go down to the dining room."
So they left their room and made their way to the dining room.
* * *
"Majesty?" Iriador inquired to her queen. "Why do you wish a fifth plate set?"
"All shall reveal itself in due course, Iriador, all in due course," Elemmiire answered quietly and happily. "Set the fifth plate but don't put a lot of food on it. Perhaps just enough for an infant."
"An infant, madam?" Iriador questioned curiously.
"Yes, Iriador an infant," Mother stated firmly before returning to her room to clean up.
* * *
My brothers were the first to enter the hall. Their gazes fell on the table with five plates.
"Was it not supposed to be just the four of us?" Celebiathion turned to his brother after seeing the fifth plate.
"Supposed to be but obviously not," Lossenethir replied.
"But-," Celebiathion started.
"But we shall ask mother when she arrives."
The doors opened and in walked father. He walked to the table and beckoned his sons to sit down. They did so and they sat on either side of him.
"Why are there five plates? I thought Elemmiire wanted it to be just us," Father asked his sons.
"We are not sure either," Lossenethir said quietly. They all sat quietly talking for about ten minutes. Then mother entered the dining room. They all stood for it is customary for one to stand when a female enters the room.
"Please, sit," she smiled happily. At that moment Iriador entered and served everyone, being sure to put a little bit of food on the fifth plate.
"Mother?" Lossenethir and Celebiathion inquired in unison.
"Yes?" She answered.
"Why is there a fifth plate when it is only us?" Lossenethir asked the question for both himself and his brother.
"Is it not obvious?" She looked to father and smiled. Father looked at her with confusion for a moment until it dawned on him.
"We are to have another join our number. Though I am not sure when," He said to Lossenethir and Celebiathion. They sat there and stared. Celebiathion wasn't quite sure, but Lossenethir-
"Of course! Why didn't I see it before! We are to have another brother, Celebiathion!" He laughed at his own folly.
"We are?" Celebiathion asked as he turned toward mother.
"We are," she nodded and smiled happily.
"When?" Father inquired again.
"In about eight months," she answered.
They all continued talking about the new baby. It was quite late before father made Lossenethir and Celebiathion go to bed.
It was later that night; Celebiathion and Lossenethir lay in bed still awake.
"Can you believe it? Another brother," Celebiathion said quietly to his brother.
"He will not be the last either," Lossenethir said in a trance.
"Pardon?" Celebiathion was startled by the way his brother was speaking.
"In total, there will be eight of us," Lossenethir said as if he had not heard Celebiathion. Celebiathion climbed out of bed and walked toward Lossenethir. He was startled by the way Lossenethir looked: his eyes were closed; he was shivering and he had broken out in a cold sweat.
Immediately, Celebiathion ran from the room to find help. He ran down the corridor to his parents' room, turned a corner, and ran right into father.
"Celebiathion! You shouldn't be out of bed," he said quietly. Celebiathion looked up at father and he was startled to see the distressed look in his eyes. "What's wrong?"
"It's Lossenethir. He's saying we're going to have four more brothers after this one. And he is lying on his bed with his eyes closed and he is shivering! Come on. We have to help him," Celebiathion said pulling him toward their room.
They entered it and Lossenethir was lying on his bed eyes closed and shivering. Father was afraid he had seen this before.
"Go, Celebiathion, get your mother," he breathed. "Quickly."
Celebiathion left and ran to find mother. She was in her room and he dragged her to their room, nearly in tears.
"Thranduil? What is it?" She asked as she entered the room.
"It's Lossenethir. I do not know if I should wake him," he answered helplessly. She walked to my brother and placed a hand on his forehead. Then, she turned to Celebiathion.
"What happened?"
"We were talking about the baby and I said 'Can you believe it? Another brother.' He said 'He will not be the last either. In total there will be eight of us.' I went to see if he was alright and I found him with his eyes closed and shivering," Celebiathion said trying not to let his tears fall. Mother closed her eyes as a distress crossed her face before she banished it.
"It is as I suspected," She turned to father. "Thranduil, he has the sight."
"Are you sure?" He asked.
"Look at him. Of course I'm sure."
"What's the sight?" Celebiathion asked.
"Visions, my son," father answered. Mother walked to Celebiathion and sank to her knees to look into his face.
"He will get like this every so often. But you must not be afraid, be strong and give him your strength to get through it. Ok?" She said quietly and he nodded.
That was the night that my eldest brother and my father learnt about Lossenethir's visions. Mother had suspected it all along. He was born during a storm. As was mother and you could see it in both their eyes. But especially in Lossenethir's, for they were blue a dark, deep indigo and when it stormed you could see it in his eyes.
* * *
"Thranduil! Fetch the mid-wife!" Mother said as she gripped the arms of her chair making her knuckles turn white. She went into labour during dinner. Lossenethir and Celebiathion were startled by the sudden outburst. Immediately, father jumped from his seat and ran out of the dining room.
"Mother what's wrong?" Celebiathion asked.
"You will have a new brother in a short while," she breathed. Lossenethir stood from his seat at hearing this and wet a cloth napkin. He placed it on mother's forehead. "Thank you."
"No need to be," he said quietly. Celebiathion sat staring quite helplessly.
A massive contraction started and mother could no longer hide her pain. She screamed and Celebiathion nearly toppled off his chair in distress. He stood quickly, walked to mother's side and held her hand.
"Squeeze my hand if it helps. Rip it off if you need to but we'll be here until the mid-wife arrives," he said quietly and mother laughed before another massive contraction took her.
Meanwhile, father was racing around the entire castle looking for Nierninwa, the mid-wife and healer.
"Nierninwa!" He screamed until his throat was raw. "Nierninwa!"
A panting she-elf came into view dashing up the corridor toward him.
"Majesty! What is it?" She came to a halt in front of father and bowed.
"Nierninwa, Elemmiire is in labour!" He said hurriedly.
"What? She is? Where is she?" She asked alarmed.
"Dining room," He pointed down the corridor behind him.
"O.k. I shall be there in a moment. I need to get my things. Go be with her," She said before she ran down the corridor again to her office.
Father turned in the opposite direction and ran back to the dining room. He opened the door slowly and nearly laughed at what he saw. His two sons were helping their mother get through the contractions. Celebiathion's hand was helping her and Lossenethir was mopping her forehead with a wet cloth.
A particularly harsh contraction tore through mother and her scream echoed through the dining hall. In an instant father was by her side.
"Elemmiire, Nierninwa will be here in a moment," he informed her quietly.
"Good, for I fear," she paused as another contraction came and went. "For I fear he will be here in a moment."
"Oh," father turned to Celebiathion and Lossenethir. "Thank you, boys, for looking after your mother. But for the rest of this I fear, you may not be present." Celebiathion opened his mouth to protest but Lossenethir beat him.
"Understandable. We will wait in the garden for our brother," he said quietly before taking Celebiathion's hand and leading him out of the room. He stopped at the door and said quietly to mother, "Good luck."
Out in the garden, Lossenethir and Celebiathion were talking quietly under the shade of a beech tree.
"I am so glad that I am not female," Celebiathion shivered. Lossenethir burst out laughing at his brother's remark. "What?"
"Nothing, nothing," Lossenethir brushed it off. "I wonder how she's doing."
"I know, it's nerve wracking isn't it? Oh well, now we know what father goes through each time he's done this and each time he has to do it again," Celebiathion said quietly.
"I know. What do you mean 'again'?" Lossenethir asked quietly.
"You don't remember?"
"Remember what?" Lossenethir asked.
"You went into a weird trance a few months ago and said 'In total there will be eight of us.' It was quite frightening to see," Celebiathion answered quietly.
"Seriously? I said that?" Lossenethir asked just as quietly.
"Yes you did. Mother said that you have the sight," Celebiathion answered quietly.
"I do?" Lossenethir asked a little confused.
"Yes, I thought-," Celebiathion was cut short by the cry of a tiny child. "We have a brother."
"We do," Lossenethir stood and held a hand out for Celebiathion to take. "Let us go see how they fare."
"Very well," Celebiathion answered.
Mother was still in the dining room. Nierninwa had cleaned up the room and had a spare bed brought in for mother for she was not yet strong enough to leave, nor would she agree to be carried out. Mother was holding a tiny baby boy. His name was Windarion. He had dark blonde hair, one could already see that. His eyes blazed with the colour of the sky. He was the optimist out of the eight of us. When each and every one of us had all but given up hope, he was there to brighten the day with his gentle words of idealism.
Celebiathion knocked on the door of the door.
"Come in," was the faint reply to his knock and both, Celebiathion and Lossenethir entered cautiously.
Smiles spread across both of their faces as they entered the dining and spotted mother with the small child in her arms on a bed.
"This is your brother, Windarion," she said smiled as they both inched closer. They looked at the tiny being in her arms, in wonderment, for they could hardly believe that he was inside of their mother for nine months.
"Windarion," Lossenethir repeated in a whisper.
"May I hold him?" Celebiathion asked.
"Of course you can," mother said quietly and she beckoned him to sit on the bed beside her. He did so and held out his arms. "Here support his head and neck like this," she showed him. "Then the rest of him will sit in your arms."
"He's so small," Celebiathion said quietly. Though, he had held Lossenethir when he was a baby, it never ceased to amaze him, even when he had his own children, but now I am getting ahead of myself.
Disclaimer: Don't own Thranduil, Legolas or Mirkwood. I own the rest though. No money made don't sue it's not worth it.
A/N: So what do you think? Twins are next. Did you like the way I had Elemmiire tell Thranduil and her sons about Windarion? Anyway, I wasn't sure how long an elven pregnancy lasts so I improvised so don't kill me if I'm wrong. Did it have enough detail for everyone's liking? I think I may have sounded third person narrative in a few parts but oh well. I tried to make this chapter better than the last 2 so congratulate me on giving detail! Hahaha j/k. Anyway, I hope it makes sense. Thanks so much for reading. Luv Gia…