He was in hell. Surely this must have been what Angband was like. His ears were bleeding with the women's poor excuse for singing. Some of the songs were vulgar, while others made no sense at all. He thought she was insane, and of all the people in Arda, he had to be kept prisoner with someone who had clearly lost their mind.
Her singing stopped, and he sighed in relief. He could finally get some much-needed sleep.
"Hey, handsome," her voice called out to him in a purr. He groaned loudly and snarled back.
"What mortal."
"What did you do to end up in a place like this?" The woman cackled with laughter as if what she had just asked was the most humorous thing she had ever heard. The mortal was crazy, but at least she was interesting.
He debated on telling her the truth. Perhaps, she would stop with her poor excuses for flirting. After his disastrous deeds with the most beautiful elf of all time, he knew no one would ever be with him. Lúthien had been named the most beautiful elf in the first age, and he almost had her as his wife. If he was being honest, the thought had greatly diminished once she opened her mouth.
Lúthien was spoiled, reckless, stubborn, ill-tempered, and spiteful. Although, that might have just been reserved for him and his brother. Admittedly, he only wanted her for Doriath. He was willing to marry her but knew no love would blossom between them. His brother's plan of wooing her was doomed from the beginning. Lúthien had given her heart to a mortal, but he had planned to wait until the man had died. That gave him enough time to slowly woo her until she begged him to be her husband.
Sitting in the dark, cold, damp cell, he realized he wouldn't have wanted her as a wife. He was willing to do his duty to his family and fulfill the oath, but it wasn't until he sat alone in Mandos did he realize what he had lost. No sane elf would want him as a husband. He was bound to remain unwed and alone except for his brothers. That fact bothered him as it was a secret desire of his to have a son of his own. When he was younger and carefree, the thought of a family and wife was suffocating. It wasn't until Tylepe was born that the desire burned within him. He never told his brothers and did not plan to anytime soon.
The voice called out to him again. "Not a talker, eh? Well, I can make up for the both of us. Hey, quick question. What's the year?"
He smashed the back of his head against the stone wall. His cell was a bare square room. Thankfully, there was a small alcove with a toilet in the back with leaves. One lone cot was pushed against the wall with a rough mattress and thin blanket. It could have been worse, but he longed to be free.
The woman had lost all sense of time and was absolutely insane. By the Valar, how long had she been here alone, singing her unintelligible songs? His short week had seemed longer with just her for company, and he was scared of the future. He would take the company that he has and hopes it's enough to help pass the time. "I don't know the year. I was dead a week ago."
Silence greeted him, and he wondered if that shut her up for good. He could use the sleep, but it was a bit sad, really. He sort of longed for her silly songs now. He didn't know how long after his admission, but then the woman's voice drifted up to him softly.
"Did you sail back from Valinor, or did you just wake up here in the forest?"
Startled, his whole body froze. How did this mortal woman know? His curiosity got the better of him, and he crawled out of his cot to sit on the floor near his cell door. The woman was sitting against the metal bars across the cavern from him. Her appearance was cleaner than the last time he looked at her. They must have let her have a bath recently. Now that she was sitting near the cell door, he got a better look at her. Interestingly enough, her blonde hair was strange. It looked like it had hints of red and yellow, but it was hard for him to see in the light. It was odd, but he found that he liked it. However, the length was much too short for his liking. Her face, now cleaner, showed off her high cheekbones and soft lips. He could see she had blue eyes, but he could not tell in the darkness of the dungeons if they were dark or light. The woman was small too. With her legs stretched out in front of the cell door, he assumed she would be a head shorter than him, maybe more.
When he finished admiring her, their eyes met, but now she looked like she was eagerly waiting for his answer. Celegorm took back his previous assumption that the woman was crazy. There was intelligence behind her eyes, and he needed to know more.
"What do you know of Valinor or how I ended up here?"
The woman just stared at him and then shrugged, "I don't know much about Valinor except for the tales. I know the history of this world, though, so I'm familiar. All I really know is I woke up in the forest, lost and confused. I wandered for half a day before the elves found me. They took me in front of their king, who wanted to know what I was doing in his forest. He didn't like my answer, so I ended up here. What about you?"
Celegorm snorted in spite of himself. Thranduil was a poor excuse for a king in his mind. Thranduil took one look at him and called for him to be killed. He was expecting to die, only for him to be thrown into the dungeons and left to rot. Apparently, Thranduill wanted Celegorm to suffer. They had forever, after all, and being a prisoner to tree fairies was his own personal hell.
"I woke up in the forest just like you. The king planned to kill me but decided to keep me prisoner instead."
His words were met with silence again, but this time he watched the woman for her reaction. Her eyes went wide just a fraction, but then she looked curious.
"Is your name Glorfindel by chance?"
"No," he snorted. As if he would ever be mistaken for one of Turgon's lesser lords. He had way too much pride to ever fall at his cousin's feet.
The woman nodded, "I didn't think so, but figured it wouldn't hurt to ask. You said you were dead a week ago?"
Not feeling the need to elaborate, he just nodded. The women didn't seem surprised, but now Celegorm found himself in a game of questions.
"Is your name Beleg?"
"No."
"Were you from Doriath?"
"No."
"Were you born here in Middle Earth?"
"No."
"Do you know Elrond?"
"No."
"Do you know Galadriel?"
He snorted, "Unfortunately."
"Hmm," the woman hummed with interest. He could see the wheels turning in her eyes, and he wondered if she would figure it out. "Were you born in Valinor?"
"Yes."
"Are you a Noldor?"
"Yes."
"Did you leave on the ships, or did you walk across the ice?"
That question made him stumble. The other questions were ones he could easily brush aside, but not that one. The women must have spent a long time amongst the elves of this age to come by the knowledge. She was educated and seemed intelligent. He was thoroughly confused.
"The ships," he answered quietly.
"Mhhhhmm."
He held his breath, waiting for her next question. It was minutes later when she asked, "you got brothers?"
He tensed, "yes."
"Any sisters?"
"No."
"Hhmmm."
The silence greeted him again. Surprisingly, he was enjoying their game. Celegorm thought she might figure out who he was eventually. His reputation certainly preceded him. He felt the tension creeping up in his body. Would she figure it out and if so, would she hate him?"
"Did you fight in the War of Wrath?"
"No."
"Ever been to Gondolin?"
"No."
"Doriath."
"Yes," he winced.
"Nargathrond?"
He flinched at that, "yes."
"Hmmm." The woman paused now and asked softly, "you got a dog?"
His heart clenched in his chest. Haun, his one faithful companion. His best friend, the one who went through hell and back with him. Came with him on every adventure, every journey, every hunt. One of the very few outside his family that he could rely on and call a friend. The betrayal still stung after all these years. "No," he replied shortly.
"Did you have a dog?"
Knowing full well what he was doing, he answered softly, "yes."
Without hesitation, the woman said, "it's nice to meet you, Celegorm."
His head turned to her in disbelief as his jaw dropped. He arched his brow at her incredulously, "really?"
She shrugged and smiled at him. "Why not? You haven't done anything to me. I'm sure all those elves you killed are now living happily in Valinor while you're stuck as a prisoner to Thranduil. Seems fitting now, doesn't it."
His eyes narrowed into slits as his nostrils flared in anger. Anger boiled under his skin at her words. Who did this mortal woman think she was? Elves fled from the sight of him, and now he was being placated and goaded by mortal women. Barely a babe out of infancy. If only his brothers could see him now. He was sure Maedhros and Maglor would agree with the women out of sheer spite. It didn't matter, though, as they all came together in the end to slaughter for the Silmarils.
"What do you know? Nothing," he snarled. "You're nothing more than an insect compared to me. I've crushed bigger bugs under my boots than you. What do you know of it anyway? Your life is a mere blink compared to mine."
Sighing, the woman just sank against the wall of her cell. "Who knows now? Besides, I won't stay here long, and I could use some help getting someplace safe. If you are interested?"
Celegorm blinked at her. The women had a way out. He scowled angrily as her very being got under his skin. "Oh, and what then?" He laughed bitterly. In a mocking tone, he asked, "I am to help you get back home to your loving family or husband?"
"No," she replied quietly. "Don't have any family anymore and no husband. I'm looking to get to Rivendell. I wanted to go to Lothlorien, but you won't be welcome there if you decide to help me."
"Who rules that realm?"
"Galadriel."
Groaning loudly, he smashed his head against the stone hard. Why was this age shit? His smug, arrogant, pretentious little cousin now ruled her own realm. Seems like she finally got what she wanted. Groaning loudly and having nothing better to do, he started asking the women questions.
"Who rules Rivendell?"
"Lord Elrond."
"Am I supposed to know who that is," he drawled.
The woman shrugged, "I figured you might, seeing as Maehdros and Maglor raised him after the third kin-slaying."
There was a lot of information to unpack in that sentence. A third kinslaying. His brothers never said anything when he saw them in the halls. It was a quick greeting, and then all of them were shunned away into separate rooms. The more startling part was that his brothers raised an elven child. He wasn't too surprised by that, seeing as his older siblings mostly raised them. No, he was surprised that they were capable of loving and taking care of a child after everything they had done. When they attacked Doriath, the oath had driven them mad, and he could remember nothing except the overwhelming need to get them.
He watched the tapestries in Mandos's halls and realized just how far gone he was. He remembers the ride to Doriath. He remembers the burning desire flaming hot against his chest as they grew closer. He remembers the dark forest and the halls of the underground city. He remembers the first few kills, too. The wood elves and their leather were no match for their sharp swords and thick armor. After the streets ran red from the blood, he moved without thought. Letting the desire and pull guide him to the silmarils. He remembers getting stabbed by Dior, the king, and he remembers dying as the world faded to black. All the little details and faces of people did not come back to haunt him, until he was tucked away deep in Mandos's halls. He didn't expect to ever leave, and the Vala had told him thus. He would be the last of his brothers to be re-embodied if any of them ever were. He couldn't remember what happened in between. One minute he was in his dark hall in Mandos and the next he was in a dark forest.
At first, he breathed out in relief at being re-embodied. He thought in the beginning that he was in Valinor. The woods were strange and filled with darkness. He could sense evil seeping in everywhere around him, and he wondered if the end of the world had come. It was only when he was surrounded by wood elves, but he began to put the pieces together. By the time he was talking in front of the king, he had enough sense about him to know that he was not home. His brothers were not with him, and he was alone in Middle Earth.
His resolve slipped when he rested on his knees in front of the king. He welcomed death again, as it meant he could go home. He knew he would find no peace in this realm and did not want to wait for someone to kill him for his past deeds. Brushing aside the memories, he focused back on the conversation at hand. His future looked brighter now, and as long as he was free, he could roam this world, looking for his brothers.
More curious than ever, he started asking her more questions.
"And this Elrond will welcome me into his realm?"
"Probably."
"You don't know for sure? Have you been there before, or is that where you are from?"
"No. No, and no."
Frowning, his mind was spinning. "How do you know so much about elven history? Did you grow up in an elvish realm?"
"I read about it in a book, and no, again."
It was his turn to mumble. "Hmm." Strange, he thought. Did they teach all humans about elven history in this time? Or perhaps some scholar documented the ages, and the women picked up the history book. "Did you grow up in a human city?"
"Yes."
"Are you royalty or a princess?"
The women had a great laugh about that. She snorted loudly and roared with laughter. Celegorm frowned at that, as he didn't think it was all that amusing. All the humans he met in the first age cared little for reading or books. Most women he encountered could not read a simple word. They relied on stories and poems to pass on their knowledge. Perhaps, humans had finally advanced since he had been gone.
She wiped some tears from her eyes and said, "you're funny."
He arched his brow, "you're not royalty, yet you can read."
In a mocking tone, her voice oozed with sarcasm, "oh yes. A poor commoner like me can read. The world has surely gone to shit since you have been dead now that women are taught to read."
Smirking, he had to hold in a laugh. At least she had her wits about her, and he found it mildly comforting as it reminded him of his brothers. He wondered again, for the hundredth time, if they were also released into Middle Earth. He hoped they were someplace better than here, but he longed to search for them. Realizing that he could possibly do that with this woman's help, he said, "if I agree to take you to Rivendell, will you get me out of here?"
"Yup," her voice echoed with a pop.
Wanting to know all the information before agreeing, he asked, "how far is Rivendell from here?"
Tess's face smirked as she replied innocently, "just over the mountains."
The two stared down one another from across the cavern. He already knew it would be a long way, but an inkling told him that this woman didn't really know the way. He blurted out, "you don't know, do you?"
"No," she admitted. "Not really. I might have a map in my bag, but the elves could have ruined it. I would like to collect my bag before we leave. They keep it just around the corner, but hopefully, everything is there."
Celegorm shrugged, as that was an easy task to accomplish. "Why are you going to Rivendell, another elven city? Do you not wish to return home?"
The woman turned her head to him and stared him down. Within a few seconds, he realized that he would not receive an honest answer from her. "No matter. I care not about your business. I agree to take you to Rivendell if you can free me."
She jumped up at that and cried, "really. Oh, thank you so much. I thought I was going to be stuck here forever. You have to promise to protect me on the journey."
He nodded, and the woman chuckled to herself, "I'd make you swear on it, but something tells me that wouldn't end well."
That comment earned her a rare smile. He has had worse companions than the women. The journey couldn't be that bad, and maybe this Elrond would know where his brothers were. "Are we in agreement?" he questioned.
"Yes," she smiled in agreement. "We can't leave until tomorrow night. There is some stupid festival for the prince, and all the elves are going to get drunk. Tauriel told me when she let me take a bath."
He could survive one more day. "Fair enough. How do you plan to break us out?"
The woman wagged her finger at him as she smirked. "You let me worry about that. I got it under control."
While he normally would not like his fate to be in a mortal's hands, he was willing to forgo judgment for now. If she came through and broke him out, he wouldn't question her again. He was curious but understood that they couldn't speak too much about their plans. Anyone could be listening.
He realized she knew his name, but he did not know hers. "Do I get the honor of knowing your name? We are to be companions on a long journey, after all."
A light blush spread across her cheeks to showcase a few freckles. She smiled though and said, "call me Tess."