A Lone Child
3 - Estel
"Perhaps this is why we are equals. We must continue father's work; we shall be the bridge between the First and Second Children of Eru."
Estel was very excited to finally be learning how to read, and being taught by none other than Master Elrond himself! Naneth was always saying that the Elf-lord was one of the cleverest people in the world, and as Estel thought his naneth was very clever herself, her admiration did nothing to lessen his considerable respect for the Master.
A heavy fully-bound dark green volume was to be his first book.The volume looked like it had been handled a great deal before by inexperienced hands. On the first blank page, there were two small handprints. It looked as if someone had patted a bit of ink onto their hands and made their mark on the book. Estel had enough of a mischevious streak to recognise a job in which the perpetrator was perfectly aware that what he was doing was wrong, and had thus committed the deed when no one was looking. Curious, Estel placed his hands on top of the handprints and, to his delight, saw that his hands matched the prints exactly.
He also became aware of the Master, who was seated next to him on the stone bench, going very still, eyes fixed on the page. The Elf-lord wore an expression that was similar to his naneth's when she was thinking about Estel's adar.
In those situations his naneth would sometimes not respond to him calling her, but Estel found that if he gently touched her hand she would come back to herself. It seemed that Lord Elrond was like that, too; Estel moved one hand from the page and onto the Master's.
Those steel-gray blinked and turned to him, as if seeing him there for the first time. Estel saw a flash of shock, then a deep sadness that the half-heartbeat in which it clouded the Elf-lord's eyes made Estel's heart squeeze in sympathy. A silent moment passed, and though the Master didn't move Estel could feel him becoming distant. Then Lord Elrond cleared his throat, and the lesson began.