A/N: You all have my most sincere apologies for making you wait so long for an update. I hope you'll forgive me, as I've been busy. Thank you to all my wonderful reviewers for your kind words and support! Please R and R!

Simple Conversation

Chapter Six: New Acquaintances

"So, you're truly Maglor, Feanor's son?" asked Elrohir as he and Maglor went slowly down the street.

Maglor nodded solemnly. "Indeed."

Elrohir was speechless. He glanced back at Glorfindel and Elladan. They were still standing in front of the café. Then he looked up at the much-taller Maglor. "Were you my father's guardian?"

Maglor was silent for a long while, making Elrohir feel uncomfortable. It was like waiting for a stormcloud to burst. You knew it would, you just didn't know when. He clutched his coat tight against his body and stared down at a few dry, brown leaves as they whispered along the sidewalk.

"I was," Maglor said finally, surprising Elrohir, who jumped.

"Why did you not come to see us?"

"I could not," the older Elf said, tilting his head back, his eyes on the velvet-black sky. "Not after what I'd done…Elrond had moved on, and so had I. I would have been ashamed to see him again." He looked down again, shaking his head. "No. It is better that I didn't."

"Is it true that you are the only one of Feanor's children left?" Elrohir asked.

Maglor stopped and turned to him. "You are inquisitive, aren't you?" He smiled faintly, a sad, reminiscent dimness in his eyes. "You're like your father. He was always curious, always into things. You have his dark hair, but your eyes are different."

"I have my mother's eyes," Elrohir said, the same bittersweet expression on his face.

Maglor sighed deeply and laid a hand on his shoulder. "You are young. Your life should not be so riddled with losses, but you have lost almost as much as I."

"We have both lost much," Elrohir said, his gaze on the pavement at his feet.

"Forgive me for not meeting you before," Maglor apologized.

Elrohir glanced up, startled. "What's there to forgive?"

Just then, Glorfindel slung an arm around Elrohir's shoulder from behind.

"So, shall we go to my apartment?" he asked cheerfully.

They passed the evening peacefully, sipping tea (Glorfindel had coffee) and talking about how they'd spent the last four Ages. The twins traveled a lot, and where currently taking their fifth trip around the world. When Maglor asked why they would do that, Elladan laughed and replied, "It's different every time."

Glorfindel was glad that the twins had so easily accepted Maglor, what with the Kinslaying business and that their father had been close to him. There was a comfortable air in his living room, one that he hadn't felt in a long time.

Maglor finally left, as he had a large rehearsal the next day for an upcoming concert. The twins decided to stay with Glorfindel for the night. They didn't have anything with them but a single suitcase of extra clothes and souvenirs from their travels.

As Glorfindel helped them pull out his sofa-bed, Elrohir asked, "How did you meet him?"

"Hmm?" Glorfindel was tired, and a bit dazed. Coffee seemed to have opposite the effect on him that it had on most people. It tended to make him fall asleep easier. He switched the lamp off, and the room instantly became a medley of grays, blues, and blacks in the nighttime darkness.

"How did you meet Maglor?" repeated Elrohir.

Glorfindel straightened up and looked at him. Quiet a moment, he went to the window and stared out at the night. A few cars zoomed past and the glow from the nearby buildings was bright. He placed his fingertips and forehead against the cool glass, the lights turning his golden hair white.

"I met him by the sea," he said simply.

The twins glanced at each other. It wasn't much of an answer.

Unexpectedly, Glorfindel gave a soft chuckle. "I wanted to see it again. I never get enough of it. And then out of the blue, here he comes with his harp. I walked right into him. Then we talked, and he played me a song in Quenya." He shrugged. "That's it. He called four months later, and we've been friends ever since." He turned to the twins, who had settled into bed. "Try to rest."

He ruffled their hair as he went to his room, still smiling. Then they heard his door click shut. Sighing, the twins burrowed into the blankets.

"What happened back there at the café?" asked Elrohir.

Elladan didn't answer for a while. Finally, he said, "That girl…the waitress…" He stopped, sorrow once more wrenching his heart.

"She looked just like her, didn't she?" asked Elrohir, staring at the blank face of the television screen.

"Yes."

"It's hard, isn't it? Everything just flooded back." Elrohir winced. "She looked so old the last time we saw her. Her hair was turning white, remember? I wanted to cry. It hurt. She was supposed to be the younger one."

"I remember," Elladan whispered.

"Why did she…?"

Elladan grasped his brother's hand. "Do not question the past. What's done is done. We can change nothing. Let us forget the pain." He squeezed Elrohir's fingers. "Please."

Elrohir sensed Elladan's grief. "Yes."

"Do you think Glorfindel plans to sail soon?" asked Elladan after a while.

Elrohir turned his back to his brother. "I hope not. I don't know what we'll do."

"We'll go with him."

There was no reply. Elrohir sighed and sagged into the flat mattress. Soon, the apartment was silent but for the light breathing of the three sleeping Elves and the ticking of Glorfindel's grandfather clock as the pendulum swung back and forth, back and forth, counting off minutes that held no meaning for those who had all the time in the world.