Disclaimer: I do not own Lord of the Rings or any recognizable characters and/or places thereof

Author's note: I always imagined Imladris as having a society not unlike a kibbutz, so I have made some assumptions as to the way of life there. If these assumptions are terribly off I'm sorry, let me know and I will fix them.

*****

The elflings setting out for Eregion numbered nine. Two among them were sent back early and never reached the fateful place. A further two died in the country. One returned who did not leave among them; she now stayed in Lothlorien. This left five visits Estel needed pay, five tales to end.

Estel knelt and, taking a small knife, opened the edge of his mattress. Carefully he withdrew the letters received nearly a year ago, and setting aside those of his brothers and Elothar, he unfolded the remaining four lengths of parchment. One was signed Muriel, another Naarie, one Karnil and the last Wilwarindi. Elemmiire had not written: at the time, he had been unconscious.

Sitting cross-legged on his bed, Estel read the letters, one after another. "Insufficient it seems to pen my emotions". . ." I treated you like dirt". . ." you saved my life". . ." You would have laughed". . ." we must speak in person". . ." It would be nice to know you better, and perhaps someday". . . how kind you were to me". . .

"Who are you?" Estel whispered. As an observer he had known them years ago, been familiar with their particular speech inflections and the beats to which they walked, but for a year no one had come to see him and he had been to see none of them, so aside from the occasional incident he had seen and heard from none of them, save Muriel. Now, taking a deep breath, Estel realized that he was not visiting one-time acquaintances but walking into a lion's den.

"Elemmiire to begin with," he resolved, "that visit will be brief. Naarie, then, and Karnil after. . ." Though he did not say so aloud, Estel had no intention of seeking out Muriel. Immature though he knew this was, there seemed no reason to further their conflict.

One advantage to a communal dining hall, Estel had discovered long ago, was the fact that between meals, the large space proved quite the haven for any person not wishing to enjoy the outdoors. Though Elves rarely had such thoughts, Estel checked the hall nevertheless, and not at all to his surprise found it empty.

With a shrug he left the hall and the indoors altogether, and searched the many grass- and flower-grown plots in the general vicinity. As luck would have it, he did find someone, but no one he sought: he found Glorfindel, recording something in a leather-bound book.

"Good day, Glorfindel," Estel said, clasping his hands behind his back and rocking from his heels to his toes. Searching the gardens and lawns of Imladris could take hours, and so Estel sought to explore Glorfindel's knowledge of his peers' locations.

The blonde-headed elf raised his head to see the young boy, and replied with suspicion, "Good day to you, Estel. Do you seek something?"

"I seek someone," Estel replied. "Have you by any chance seen Elemmiire, Glorfindel? Or Naarie or Karnil?"

"No, I am afraid I have not," Glorfindel replied, and Estel answered quickly, "Thank you, Glorfindel; have a nice day--" and turned to leave.

"Wait a moment, child," Glorfindel called, and Estel returned his attentions to the elf. "I did, however, see Muriel, as you may wish to know."

"I was--" Estel began, but Glorfindel cut him off as though he had not opened his mouth at all.

"The poor girl was nearly in tears, Estel, she was hysterical. I do not know nor wish to know what you said to her, but I see no decent reason you should not apologize. You know better."

Estel groaned inwardly, but said to Glorfindel, "Yes, Glorfindel, I will speak to her later."

"You do that," Glorfindel replied. "Now go on, Estel. Wilwarindi, I believe, has found a nice history tome to drown himself in and taken it to a private spot on the grass."

"Thank you, Glorfindel!" Estel replied, and had begun to leave when a thought occurred to him. "Glorfindel? If this is a secret place, how do you know of it?"

Glorfindel gave him a withering look, then explained calmly, "Every one has a secret life. Surely you do not think I spend all my hours at work? Wilwarindi may tell you whatever he wishes; I shall keep my silence."

Laughing to himself, Estel wandered off, pondering. Where ever Wilwarindi was, it would be a secluded spot, but one filled with sunshine--or so Estel presumed, based on his knowledge of Elven nature--and not too far from the library. Lost in thought, Estel hardly heard a warning called out to him nor noticed the noise until he felt a pain, then a tingling numbness about his ear.

"Oh, no! We are truly sorry, we tried to warn you--Estel?"

Looking up, the boy saw the piercing blue eyes and raven hair unmistakably belonging to Naarie, who gazed in awe at Estel, then looked over his shoulder and called, "Karnil, it is Estel!"

Neither Karnil nor Naarie was particularly tall with respect to their race, making them only a bit taller than Estel, an awkward situation for one accustom to looking up to see others. "I was just looking for the two of you," Estel said, looking from one to the other, "to reply to your letters."

"Letters? Oh! Our letters! Yes, I remember now. How have you been, Estel?" Karnil asked. "We have seen little of you in long enough."

For a moment Estel's throat stuck, then he blurted out the first thing he thought, which was, "I'm sorry about Luinil." At once he regretted his words, and Karnil's face darkened as though cast beneath a shadow, but the shadow passed quickly away.

"I will never stop missing my brother," Karnil stated, "but there is no reason in dwelling on his passing to the Halls of Waiting. Someday we will be together again, Valar willing, but a broken heart did not take my own life, so I go on."

There the conversation ground to a halt, and Estel ventured, "Eregion. . ." Then words failed him.

Naarie rested a hand on Estel's shoulder. "Eregion was terrible," he spoke quietly. "We try to move forward from it, not dwell upon it." Though this seemed an almost frightened whisper, Estel saw in Naarie's eyes his true intents. Muriel hand spoken with the boys, warned them of Estel's state. So be it.

"Of course," said Estel with a nod. A deeper truth in Naarie's eyes read that the incident was over, and he truly had grown away from it. Karnil, too, showed this: only the loss of his brother hindered his contentment. "I- -I shall see you about, then, I suppose?"

Naarie and Karnil nodded. "Have a wonderful day, Estel!" Naarie said, his own cheerful fare-thee-well.

"You too," Estel muttered, watching as the two took their ball, which had earlier smacked the mortal on the ear, and returned to their game. So they had moved on, they had grown out of an experience he could hardly face. For a long time Estel watched Naarie and Karnil play, denying an invitation to join them, then, as the sun set, headed for bed. He was not tired, but wearied.

*****

To be continued