AN: Wow! Thank you everyone for the wonderful response! Diola lle! It was very unexpected and I'm so flattered.
Teleute- ::cheers:: There's so few fans who know anything about the Simarillion. And I've found an expert! Any helpful hints on other Elvish tutorials, etc.? The majority of the other fics were bugging me too, which is one of the reasons why (after correcting numerous authors) that I made this fic a priority (besides the fact that I fell in love with it).
Princess of the Fae- ::hits head:: I knew it was late when I was typing, but I can't believe I spelled Aragorn's name wrong. Seems my eyes and fingers are plotting against me. ^_^' Thanks!
Lana- Yea, I knew some of the words were made up, though most had Tolkien-ish roots. But I thought the majority was truly his. ::sigh:: That site is plotting against me. I need to see if I can get my hands on a true Tolkien paper (and not virtual) book about the languages. I believe there is one... somewhere...
Tomoyo Sakura- Diola lle! You will find that this will become much better than it was originally (or so I hope). At least the plot is. Thank you so much for faithfully reading!
Once again, thank you EVERYONE! Reviews work miracles for updates, so keep 'em coming! ^_^' Some of you asked about the names and pairings. Well,
Simarillion names, pairing I'm proud to say that the names were all formed with the mini-elvish dictionary in the back of the Simarillion, and nothing else (which is the reason why they might not be 100% grammatically correct). After reading through it several times, I almost memorized it so it wasn't too hard.
And as for the pairing... well, I can't really give a one word answer. It will be complicated, I can guarantee that. And anyone who has read my other fics knows I HATE cliches, so (though we all love him) don't come looking for a popular elvish prince to be the knight in shining armor. Sorry to disappoint (some) of you! Now Tilion, Teleute, that would make an excellent pairing. Especially Selenity/Tilion (or perhaps Celebrian/Tilion if you look at it my way ^_^'). Unfortunately, that won't work for this fic, but that's a really great idea. I'll keep what I have in mind secret for a bit, but you'll find out (some of) it soon enough. ^^;;
Also, for those that haven't already, check out the Very Secret Diaries by Cassandra Claire. Some of you might know her as a popular HP author, but she writes LotR too! Warning that some of the content of the diaries might not be, erm, appropriate for some of the younger audience, but they are SO hilarious. Be sure to check them out! ; (also ; for the newest ones) Hopefully she'll get Legolas Part 2 up soon: Still the prettiest.
"..." is talking, '...' is thought, [...] is AN or definition, (...) is extra info but part of the fic, ... means trailed off, -- means interrupted, AND ^^^^ indicates a TIME CHANGE (this chapter is mostly a flashback/dream). Sorry for the excessively long AN. Enjoy the fic!
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The land was fair and full of life. Birds twittered and danced through the sky while trees swayed joyously with the wind. A mighty waterfall poured down a cliff to nourish the valley, and all around flowers bloomed and grass sprouted and good things grew.
A youthful dark-haired elf, the son of Earendil Half-Elven, stared at the valley, nibbling on a blade of grass and forming a vision in his mind. Gradually, his vision took shape as white buildings and useful paths and golden citadels appeared from the water's mist. More elves gathered, working hard to complete the buildings. The dark-haired elf worked beside them as one of them to build the Last Homely House east of the Sea.
^^^^(Flash to new scene later in time)^^^^
Gardens blossomed and ivory roofs gleamed in the fair land as the dark-haired lord of the valley sat again on the same slope, nibbling a blade of grass. He wrung his hands nervously, watching the entrance to the valley.
At last, she came. For the first time, he beheld the daughter of Lorien, and she beheld the fair valley that would come to be called Imladris, Rivendell. Yet the beauty could not overcome her sorrow. She walked slowly, her head covered by a white veil and her face pale, as if she were leaving her childhood behind because of an arrangement in which she had no say. She was surrounded by a mass of excited elven women who led her into the valley, but she did not share their joy.
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The lord and lady stood beside each other under a golden tree. Even in daylight, her hair gleamed silver, in contrast with his hair, darker than twilight. Both faces looked equally nervous as they joined hands to forge the eternal bond between Imladris and Lorien.
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They had been married for countless years, yet at times it seemed as if they never knew each other. Four children watched while their parents argued.
"I go to Lorien, hir en amin," [my lord (distant)] said the silver-haired woman.
"But you have barely returned," he replied.
"I have tarried here nearly a year, hir en amin. I long to return."
The man grew angry. "It is time you realize where you belong, hirilamin," he said, stressing the second syllable. [*my* lady]
"Very well then," said the lady, her face white and angry. "I shall go home."
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From that day on, the children remembered being ushered back and forth between their mother and father in Lothlorien and Imladris. At age 1500, Elladan and Elrohir, the eldest twins, convinced their father to let them build their own lives. They were given more freedom, and at times it seemed they avoided both Lorien and Rivendell and spent their days hunting whenever possible.
Still, Arwen and her younger sister Celebithil moved back and forth, remaining in one land for a score of years before crossing the Red Horn Pass to return to the other.
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The sisters were journeying home to Rivendell on the Red Horn Pass. They were shocked to learn, the morning of their departure, that their mother would be accompanying them for the first time in hundreds of years. Celebrian walked behind the sisters, head held high, but her eyes betrayed fear and anxiety. Celebithil wondered what had caused the sudden change in her mother, but she had reason to believe her grandmother had something to do with it.
The sisters entered the valley smiling, for the first time in years. Celebithil had hurried down the slope, but her mother stopped.
"I go no further," she said simply, standing on the mountainside overlooking the fair valley. "Go on, he will be waiting for you."
The girls reluctantly walked away from their mother down the slope. Elrond looked up from his balcony with shock to behold his wife standing in the distance above, like a memory or a dream: cold and white and beautiful like a star. She smiled once, sad and forgiving, then was gone.
Two days later, a runner arrived in Rivendell bearing news. On her return trip to Lorien, Celebrian had been captured by orcs and poisoned.
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The next year, Celebrian departed over the Sea. She finally came to Imladris to bid her husband and children farewell.
She spent a long time alone with Elrond, and what words were exchanged, none could guess and neither would say. But after she left, Elrond locked himself in his chambers, and refused to even open the door to his own sons.
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Not much changed after Celebrian departed. Understanding his sons, he gave them free rein to hunt and fight and travel as they wished, as long as they returned to the valley. He continued to usher the sisters to and from Lorien, keeping the ties between the two elvish sanctuaries strong.
But it was his youngest daughter that caused him the most difficulty. She was a mystery to him. Try as he might, he could not make her a proper elvish lady. She was clumsy and hasty with an unquenchable spirit for adventure. The only solution Elrond saw was to try to stomp it out of her. In Imladris, he made her remain in the valley and never wander far from the buildings. When her sister occasionally went riding with her brothers, he forbade her to join them. When he discovered her secret lessons in blacksmithry, the lessons were immediately ended. He ordered her to be inside at sundown each night as a curfew. He understood Arwen, who took after Luthien, far better than he ever hoped to comprehend Celebithil.
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It was the night before the girls' departure for Lorien. [It is Feb. 2980 T.A. for those watching closely with the RotK timeline]. Celebithil cautiously stepped into her father's study.
"Yes Eldasil?" he asked, not looking up from his letter.
"I speak on behalf of Arwen, Father, yet she did not ask me to speak."
"Then speak!" said Elrond impatiently.
Celebithil gulped. "She would not admit it to you, but she wishes to remain in Imladris. Although I still wish to journey to the Golden Wood, it seems her heart has finally chosen her true home," she said evasively, not sure whether her father had guessed the true reason Arwen wished to stay, which took the form of a tall dark-haired mortal called Estel.
Knowing Arwen and Aragorn's 'secret' for many years, Elrond well knew what Arwen hoped, but did not reveal this to his other daughter. "If it is not for herself, than it is for you that she must go," he replied.
"But Father," Celebithil insisted. "Many times you have let Arwen travel without me. Will you not let me travel without her?"
"You forget, Eldasil, that Arwen is one thousand years your elder."
"Arwen is only 926 years older than I!" she boldly declared.
"Do not mock me!" shouted Elrond in annoyance.
"I am one thousand, eight hundred and thirteen years old, and yet you treat me as if I were barely a century!" she cried, letting loose all the pent up frustration that had built up inside over the years. "I am *not* a child anymore, atar en amin! ['father of mine', expressing distance] I doubt you've noticed it, but there are some silvan elves who have been married for nearly 500 years at my age. Yet you continue to limit my activities and not allow me to do the things I wish. When Arwen was my age she was constantly riding and wandering alone, and I'm sure you'd have let *her* go hunting if she wished. Yet you have treated me the same since the day I entered this world! I am not an Aihin [little child] and it's about time you realized it!" [AN: Don't get me wrong, Celebithil dearly loves her sister, but she's using her as a weapon against her father].
Elrond's face was red, and his eyebrows were at a perfect 90 degree angle. "You are NOT one of the silvan elves!" he roared. "You are Eldasil Peredhel, one of the few High-Elven women remaining in Middle Earth, with a lineage far greater than any other. It's about time you lived up to it! Your great ancestors fought hard and suffered long for the future, at times giving their lives, yet you toss aside the gift to share their blood to be simple forest-dweller!!!"
His voice went deadly quiet. "Yet you insist that you are an adult. Very well then. Be prepared to face the consequences."
He stormed out of the room, leaving a very angry daughter behind.
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The next morning, the sisters and a company of elves prepared to depart for Lorien. Elrond embraced his eldest daughter, wishing her a safe and speedy journey. He did not even glance at Celebithil. Turning a cold shoulder, she put up an indifferent facade to an aching heart, and strutted from the valley, the last time she ever departed from Rivendell for the Golden Wood.
~o~o~o~o~END DREAM~o~o~o~o~
Celebithil awoke in her bed sobbing. 'Curse those stupid memories,' she thought as she hugged her knees and rocked back and forth. 'Forty years pass and still they haunt me.' Tears streamed down her face.
Someone entered the room, sheltering a candle. The girl looked up from the light, with a pale face and dark hair and smiled. "I thought you might want a friend," she said simply as she sat on the bed.
"Kemenuial, it's the dream again. It keeps making me relive it. It's so horrible!"
"Shh..." said the much younger elf. "I know."
Kemenuial was little more than 500 years old, but she did know. Her parents had been killed by orcs, and Menelsul and Mirengaer themselves had taken her in and raised her. During Celebithil's visits to the village, she had become very close to the strange girl who could almost read minds. The child was wiser than elves ten times her age, yet she was weak and vulnerable. The people of the village feared her uncanny abilities, and Menelsul and Mirengaer worried what might happen to the small girl if orcs attacked again. So with Celebithil's help, they arranged a home for her in Caras Galadhon- as Celebithil's maiden. She flourished among the five girls close(r) to her age, and the six became almost like sisters. [Kemenuial means 'Twilight of the Earth'].
Celebithil didn't have to tell her anything. Even at her young age, Kemenuial understood the thoughts and fears and wishes of the others. "He regrets it," she said simply. "He wishes more than anything to welcome you home. If only you could see what thirty-nine years of worry has done to him." She smiled. "If only you could see how much you really are like him."
Celebithil looked up from her knees. "You're joking, right? I'm nothing like my father. How could I possibly be like him?"
Kemenuial stood up and smiled. "You're more like him than you could ever imagine. You deny it, and he is blind too it, but with your dominant stubborn streaks, you are definitely your father's daughter."
"Mani!?!" ['What!?!'] said Celebithil raising her eyebrows, with a look of disgust on her face. "I'm not stubborn!" (She didn't ask how Kemenuial could compare her to the man she had never met.)
Kemenuial snickered. "Oh yes you are! Remember that time Lady Galadriel tried to make you do the wash? Or when Nenloth tried to convince you to wear a gown to supper?" Kemenuial erupted into giggles and almost dropped the candle.
Celebithil threw a pillow at her and pouted. "I am not."
"Ume, you are," Kemenuial insisted.
"Am not, am not, am not!"
Kemenuial burst out laughing again. "There you go!"
Celebithil was about to retort when there was a groan next door. The two girls immediately quieted and shrunk against the wall, Kemenuial shielding the candle. After several moments without breathing, the girls relaxed.
"I better go," Kemenuial whispered. "You don't want old Adanedhel waking up again and causing another ruckus. I was sore for weeks after all the chores Galadriel made us do."
Celebithil nodded in painful remembrance. "Be careful not to wake up the others," she advised as Kemenuial slipped out the door. "Last time Hinenmel woke up in the middle of the night, she insisted on having a big slumber party. They usually end up with stolen lembas batter and shaving cream in Naurfea's hair. And more cleaning for us."
Kemenuial turned and smiled. "Diola lle, Celebithil," she said sincerely. "Thank you for everything." She disappeared into the shadows of the talan and was gone.
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AN: Well, now we've met all the Outers, but what about the Inners? They're coming soon enough. All but Taurenreil have already been mentioned. See if you can figure out who's who. ^_^'
The Fellowship finally arrives next time!!! ::happy dance:: Thank you for reading and please review! Also, my updates will be less frequent and probably mostly on weekends/late at night now that exam week is over (we got half days during exam week). If you'd like to be alerted via email when I update, say so in a review and leave your email. Thanks! Namarie, mellonae!
~Calli-chan