Days turned into weeks and weeks to a month since the arrival of the fellowship and Aurë knew that they would soon be leaving-they had lingered in Caras Caladhon for too long. No matter how much she wished they would stay within the protection of Lórien, they had a larger purpose. She dreaded the day they would finally part ways and cherished every moment with them. They had become her dear friends and the thought of their bravery and the burden they had undertaken made her want to keep them close all the more. If she knew how she would gladly shoulder their burdens. But she could not-but she could do her part in raising their spirits-which is why she went to visit them every day.
She had gotten to know the party quite well the past month but none more than Legolas, though this had been unintentional. He seemed to have formed a habit of appearing wherever she happened to be. He would find Aurë walking through the woods and make her laugh as he regaled her with stories of his youth. He would find her singing in the gardens and add his voice to hers while picking flowers and placing them in her starlit hair, making her blush. He would find her as she walked along branches and catch her when she stumbled. And he was always there when she came to visit the Fellowship in their camp.
This evening was no different, for as she approached the fountain that was the Fellowship's camp, humming a cheery little song to herself, Legolas was there to quickly guide her to the edge of the fountain where it had become a habit for her to seat herself. It had been a beautiful day—the dawn had been bright and beautiful, although she had not been able to hear the song, and had given way to a bright, clear sky.
"Good evening!" she called out merrily.
There was a chorus of good evenings back and a flurry of motion as Merry and Pippin rushed forward to relieve Aurë of the basket of food she had brought. She noted that Frodo and Sam were no more to be seen, but did not put any more thought into the matter. She turned to the other hobbits with a smile. Perhaps she was spoiling them, the thought occurred to her as she fondly watched them dig into the basket, but their enthusiasm was contagious and she found she could not deny them anything.
"Good evening, Lady Tindómiel," Legolas murmured softly to her, almost caressing the wind with his words.
Shyly, she bent her head and looked at him through her lashes, still unused to his intense attention despite their growing friendship. "Good evening, Legolas," Aurë whispered, feeling rather dazed when he smiled widely in response. Her own lips curved up into a slight smile in response to his infectious grin. He was always very attentive of her and she was unused to such regard from males. She did not know what to make of it.
"Tindómiel!" Merry called, catching her attention. He was grinning widely at her with crumbs of a dinner roll plastered to his face. "Thank you for the delicious treats!"
She giggled in delight. "It is my pleasure, Merry!" The Hobbits seemed to need no prompting for as soon as she had settled they burst into stories of the Shire and Aurë listened eagerly. Eventually, their food was eaten and their stories faltered. It was then that Pippin turned to Aurë eagerly, a questioning look in his eyes.
"Lady Tindómiel!" Pippin called, his mouth full of food and Sam nudged his shoulder for the rudeness. "Now that you have heard many stories of our homes, would you tell us of yours?"
Aurë's brow furrowed in confusion, for they were currently in her home. "Caras Galadhon?"
"No, the stars!" Pippin exclaimed looking up into the sky and then blinking when the intermix of light from Tillion and Arien blinded him. "That is what the legend says, right? That you came from the stars?"
"Yes. That is true," Aurë smiled sadly. "What would you like to know?"
"What was it like? Being a star?"
Aurë's gaze became distant as she thought. "My Lady, you need not answer if it causes you distress," said Gimli, reaching a hand out to lightly cuff the back of Pippin's head.
"No, it is no trouble!" She protested, reaching out to gently rub Pippin's tousled hair. "It is no bother to me, I merely look for the words to describe it." She paused, retracting her hand. "It is hard to describe, I admit, for it was an entirely different state of existence from what I have experienced here." She paused. "It was… effortless, I suppose. It was easy, I did not have to be concerned with the heaviness of my body—I was unconfined. Any emotion, any action was simple and transparent—no hiding behind a mask." Aurë gestured to her face. "No arranging of features. I just... was. And it was joyous. It would be akin to that feeling you described when you were jumping to catch apples off of the branches," She nodded to the Hobbits. "Or that moment when you are submerged in water on a hot summer's day."
She struggled with words for a moment, glancing around at the faces listening to her every word. Aurë felt nervous, for she did not wish to disappoint her eager audience. "I was made of both fire and ice, I guess you could say, because I would dance among the other stars all night, but could also withstand Arien's fiery embrace if I stayed out too late." Aurë grinned ruefully. "Which I did often. I loved the dawn, something that has not changed, I admit. There is nothing I love more than seeing the world wake up to her light; the flowers tilting their heads to her, the world erupting in vibrant colours, the people waking up to get to their day's duties." Aurë sighed, thinking of the memory fondly.
"And dusk when the reverse would happen—when the world would lay down its burdens and become painted in silver light." She turned to Legolas and gave him a fond smile. "Seeing the elves turn their heads to gaze up at Varda's skies."
"It sounds wonderful," Legolas murmured, a gentle smile curving his lips.
"It was." Aurë returned his smile. "There was nothing I enjoyed more than helping the weary traveller find their way home, or the wayfinding sailor navigate Ulmo's seas—warning them by painting the dawn in reds when a storm was imminent."
"My Lady?" Merry spoke up as her story came to a pause. "The elves call you Tindómiel, do they not? The Morning Star?" At her nod, he continued and she reluctantly moved her gaze from where it had been held captive by Legolas. "I am merely curious; when you were a star were you the morning star? I mean, currently, there is one in the sky…" He trailed off unsurely. "That is the Star of Eärendil?"
Aurë smiled. "That is correct. The star is Eärendil and his Silmaril gleaming from Valinor. He took my place sometime after my fall—to guide and give hope where I could not." At this, her smile fell—feeling rather distressed of what she could no longer do. Even mention of her fall reminded her all too well of the coldness in her shoulder and she found herself grasping the offending limb.
It was then that a soft hand came over her own grasping her shoulder and she was startled from her reverie. She turned and met the gaze of Legolas as he gave her a soft look. His hand on hers felt like the sun breaking away the ice of a lake as winter became spring. For a moment, she forgot of the icy pain in her shoulder and she gazed at him in wonder. "My Lady?"
Aurë flushed then and avoided his gaze, the relief of his touch and the burden of his gaze bringing havoc on her emotions.
"Does your wound still bother you?" Aragorn questioned; his gaze on her shoulder.
"On occasion," Aurë admitted, "although I know not whether the ache is real or if it is my own mind creating the pain." Aurë glanced around at the Fellowship giving her sad and concerned looks and she became distressed. "That is not to say it has been all bad being here! I have experienced wondrous things being down upon the soil—things I could have never dreamed of. Before the world was so distant and now I get to experience it all for myself first hand." She paused, gazing upon her hand still pinned in the grasp of Legolas. "Truth be told, if I had not been given this chance I would have never realized how lonely I once was." She whispered, shyly meeting Legolas's gaze once more.
Legolas had a look about him as if he wished to say something-perhaps to soothe her, but never got the chance as Pippin nudged his way in between them, taking a hold of her hand. "You should come to the Shire! You'd never feel lonely at The Green Dragon Inn!"
Aurë laughed delightedly, glad for the change of topic, even as Boromir let out a scandalized grunt. "You cannot invite the lady to a tavern!"
"Why not?" Merry asked, taking a place on the fountain next to Aurë. "It is a wonderful place!"
"The best!" Pippin chimed in before standing on the edge of the fountain.
"Oh, you can search far and wide,
You can drink the whole town dry,
But you'll never find a beer so brown,
Pippin sang and Merry quickly jumped to his feet to join him. Aurë had a huge smile on her face as she kept rhythm with her foot. She could see Boromir bring a hand to his head, but she did not miss the small smile that curled his lips. The rest of the group–Gimli most so–were also equally entertained by the two hobbit's antics.
Oh, you'll ever find a beer so brown!
As the one we drink in our hometown,
As the one we drink in our hometown!
You can drink your fancy ales,
You can drink them by the flagon!
But the only brew for the brave and true…
Come from the Green Dragon!"
Aurë clapped her hands as they finished, absolutely delighted. She was finding that she adored hobbits more and more with each passing day. Oh, how she longed to visit the Shire! She now understood what kept drawing Olórin back to the Shire time and time again. They were such joyous creatures, their hearts on their sleeves. They had such an appreciation for life that Aurë had forgotten and it was infectious. She rose to her feet clutching her hands to her heart. "Your voices rival that of the dawn, Master Hobbits!"
"Might we hear from the dawn herself, my Lady?" Merry asked, a sly grin upon his youthful face. "We have heard it distantly in the mornings but I should be glad to hear it now."
"So that we might compare, my Lady," Pippin added, a cunning smile of his own, "lest we think you a liar."
Boromir made a move to protest but Aurë raised a hand to silence him. With a cunning smile of her own, she sang;
"The Lady of Light burns bold and bright,
Each day from dawn till dusk
But in the night she yields her light
To the man of silver husk
The Man of the Moon has one desire
He only wants one thing
He'll bear the burn of sunlight's fire
Just to hear her sing
Her voice is strong, her light is great
The Man is soft and dim
He'll bear the weight, stay out too late
Just to join her hymn
Upon her wake the sun takes glee
In the silver song of Moon
They sing a song in secrecy
A joyful little tune
But dawn is short, they don't have long
They sing with all their might
Each dawn and dusk they sing their song
The Lady of light burns bold and bright"
The fellowship around her raised their hands in applause and rose to their feet. Aurë flushed a petal pink but giggled and gave them a small curtsy. From there, the clearing soon became filled with song and laughter. Aurë was pulled up into dance and she took the time to dance with all the Fellowship members, save Sam and Frodo.
Being in the arms of Legolas made her nervous, for eyes were tender upon hers and his hands wound linger a moment longer, but she could not help spinning back to him time and time again. They danced long into the night before exhaustion bid them goodnight. When Aurë found herself back in her Talon she was in high spirits knowing that she had given her friends one more day of happiness, that she was able to give hope one more time.
*Shows up fifteen minutes late with Starbucks*
My bad, gang!