Title: A tale about friendship, Part 14?
Author: Dís Thráinsdotter
E-mail: Overall rating: M, for violence and orctorment. This chapter: M
Summary: A group of children are told the tale of their friendship with the dwarves in general and the Folk of Durin in particular.
Warnings: The overall rating of this fic is M, as parts of it deals with violent battle and torment. There are also Original Characters in the fic, but no Mary Sues. Unbetaed, all mistakes belong to me.
Disclaimer: I don't own any one of Tolkien's characters, never have, and never will. The only ones I own are the people you have never met before.
Chapter 14, Feasts and gifts
"I am sure that you didn't only fight or prepare for battle," Bard said and Balin answered
"We did do other things also. We had a feast once a month to congratulate all who had their birthdays that month. We would also have feasts during the winter months in order to show the rescued peoples that they were among friends who were happy for them. Melian considered these feasts as part of the healing process and therefore we made sure that we had good food and drink for everyone at them." Dáin added
"One year Thórin, Frerin and Boromir worked together to make a present for Melian. It started as they discussed the story about Túrin and Mîn entered the discussion. Boromir said that his father was certain that had Khîm not been slain by the Outlaws things would have been different. Thórin had looked at Melian who was holding one of the rescued Elves in her arms and said to the others ´if Melian and Emeldir had been there at the time what would have happened?´ and so they started writing and drawing.
They started with the day when Mîm and his sons met Túrin and his band of Outlaws and Khîm was wounded. In their tale Melian and Emeldir was there at the time, gathering herbs for medicines when they met Khîm and Ibun who ran as if Glaurung was after them. Khîm staggered and fell into Melians arms and Melian aided him to a place where he could lay down. She and Emeldir removed the arrow, staunched and stitched the wound and dressed it. When Ibun came back after a while he saw his brother speaking with Melian as Emeldir had been sent to see what was going on. She came back and told them that their father had been taken captive by the Outlaws but that he was unharmed. Then Melian went with Khîm and Ibun so that she would be able to nurse Khîm back to health. When Túrins Outlaws and Mîm came to Amon Rudh they found not only both sons of Mîm there but also an infuriated Melian who told Amborn as she returned the arrow to him that he had best be careful where he aimed his arrows in the future.
From then on the story changed with Melian staying with the Petty dwarves in Amon Rudh. Beleg found when he came that there was a daughter of Men challenging him about what his people had done to the people of Mîm and demanding explanations for it. So Mîm and Beleg were able to make friends. When the Orcs of Morgoth Khîm took Mîm and Ibun captive Khîm and Melian raised the alarm and the Outlaws and Beleg rescued Mîm and Ibun. Túrin and Beleg were then able to persuade Mîm, his sons and Melian to go to Doriath with them and there Thingol was persuaded by Melian the Maia to give wareguild to Mîm for all his slain kinsmen. The book ends with the people of Mîm as Resident Dwarves in Doriath, Túrin reunited with his mother and sister, and as Morgoth realised that he was defeated the release of Húrin who could go to Doriath and join his family."
Melian smiled when the book was mentioned and said "it is called ´the tale of Mîm – as it could have been and Melian wrote in her book that it was one of the gifts that was highly valued by her. It has been passed down through the generations and is now in my possession. I like the illustrations in it, they are made with so much love." Dáin agreed with her and said
"They would sit down, discussing what Melian would have done in a particular situation and what would have happened as a consequence of that." Thranduil thought about it and said
"I think about it at times, all the what-ifs and buts that have come into my thoughts. King Thingol was my kinsman but I am the first to admit that he wasn't the most diplomatic Elf lord in Beleriand. Even before the disaster with the craftsmen of Nogrod he was never as loved by the visiting Dwarves as king Felagund whom I heard many Dwarves speak about while I grew up. I heard at one time that a group of the people of Belegost was constantly staying in Nargothrond, and the Lord of Belegost had to keep a rotation so that all of his people could go there for a time." Balin and Dáin had also heard such stories told by those who descended from Belegost. They had been proud to say "my forefather was dandled on Finrod Felagunds lap" but they had at the time not quite understood the importance of it. With their friendship with the Realm of Mirkwood they now understood that it was of great importance, there had been friendship between Dwarves and Elves and there could be again.
TBC