What you recognize I don't own. Also part of this story is based (with permission of the person who continued the work of the original author after the original author died) on part of a chapter of a story called Stirrings of Shadow by Fiondil, which can be found at stories of arda . com (all one word) , more specifically part of Chapter 35 of that story and thus that part since it is basically a direct qoute will not change in style
Thandir wondered what the meeting was about since Gil-Galad hadn't been seen for two days and neither had Elrond. He still remembered with some regret the fact that while he had done his best to succor the survivors of Gondolin in Glorfindel's honor, and had made sure that those who wished to sail made it safely to the ports by escorting them personally, every time he had still lost some of those survivors to fading it made him feel like he had failed Glorfinel. He still remembered when he had been told of Gondolin's fall and the death of Glorfindel, after the survivors had reached a point of safety and had all agreed not to make any decisions in haste Thandir's lord at the time noticed that Thandir was struggling with whatever it was he had been told and thus ordered to take time off to deal with whatever it was that was affecting him. And that permission had allowed Thandir the opportunity to properly mourn Glorfindel's loss, though even though it had been thirteen hundred years since that day there were still times the emotions of Glorfindel's loss hit him hard and everyone had learned to avoid Thandir on those days and had learned to recognize when it was one of those days as well, though the anniversary of finding out about Glorfindel's death was an automatic day off for Thandir and everyone also automatically avoided Thandir on that day as well. And considering that the anniversary of that day was coming up again, combined with the fact that the King and the King's presumed successor were possibly missing Thandir was on edge and everyone knew it and gave him as wide a berth as possible considering Thandir's duties
"Has no one actually seen them since the evening two days past?"
"No Thandir, no one has seen them"
(Sighs) "I understand tell me as soon as one or both of them have been seen"
"Understood"
Thandir thinks back to the first day that Elrond and Gil-Galad went missing
Two days ago
"Where's Gil-Galad?"
"Unknown, Elrond sent a missive that he needed to see Gil-Galad in his rooms and didn't show up for morning meal"
"Find him!, and Elrond if possible"
Unfortunately the two couldn't be found that day or the next
Present
"Please let them be found soon safe and well, I can't afford to lose anyone else this week, I just can't, especially Elrond considering what this week actually is and means to me"
Suddenly the door opens and a very unexpected visitor enters the room and has Thandir immediately both bow and speak to the visitor
"My Lord Celeborn I was not expecting you"
"I know, I just ran into Gil-Galad and he told me that he wanted me to be here when a visitor was brought before the court"
Thandir gives out a sigh of relief at that news
"Then King Gil-Galad is safe at least, how soon will he be here?"
"He told me ten minutes when I saw him a moment ago, he said that there was still something he had to do real quick and that when he returns Elrond will be with him"
"Then all shall be ready for whatever is going on"
Ten minutes later and Gil-Galad and Elrond entered the room and Gil-Galad spoke up
"We have an important visitor that Elrond and I have been talking to these past two days for reasons that may or may not become obvious as soon as you see the person"
"When shall this visitor enter the room my lord?"
"At my signal for the doors to be opened"
And so everyone got into the positions that they were either told to be in or were supposed to be in whenever court was held, everyone wondering who the visitor was and if they were really important for such a late meeting. Thandir wondered why he was to be standing next to Celeborn and why they were positioned the way they were but Gil-Galad had insisted that the positioning had to be the way it was. When the person would finally enter the room though everyone was shocked, especially Thandir for the person was known to have died a long time ago because the person was Gorfindel of Gondolin, the one who died fighting a Balrog which allowed Eärendil to escape when he was just a young child. As for Thandir when Glorfindel spotted him and smiled his joy so completely unadulterated, Thandir did not know where to look and felt unaccountably ashamed. He only looked up when he felt Glorfindel take him into his arms and give him the kiss of one kinsman to another.
"I'm glad to see a familiar face, Cousin," the golden-haired ellon whispered to him. Then he stepped back, giving him a searching look. "Art thou mine enemy?" he said unexpectedly, asking the question he had asked Thandir all those centuries past when neither knew if they would survive the frozen hell which they were crossing. Thandir shook his head and then did the only thing he could think of: he knelt before this Reborn ellon, offering Glorfindel his knife. "If thou seest an enemy before thee, lord, let him be slain," he whispered the words he had said all those long yéni ago. "Yet if in thy heart thou seest a friend, let this knife be witness to our pledge of amity."
For a long moment Glorfindel did not move and Thandir was acutely aware of Gil-galad's court looking on with undisguised curiosity at the tableau before them. Then Glorfindel took the knife from Thandir's hands and with a single motion sliced his palm before returning the knife to its owner. Without breaking eye contact with Glorfindel, Thandir sliced his own palm and then they joined hands.
"Let the Valar be our witnesses that in the mingling of our blood I see naught but a friend before me," Glorfindel intoned softly, a gentle smile on his face.
"As do I," Thandir said, repeating the same words he had spoken under the silent regard of the shimmering curtains of light that were ever present in their trek across the Ice. Then Glorfindel pulled him up into a tight embrace again and Thandir wept. Upon realizing that Thandir needed a private moment with Glorfindel, Gil-Galad instantly emptied the room, especially realizing that the anniversary was coming up which was making Thandir even more emotional than normal
"I...I did my best but...but some...some of the survivors..."
"Sh...I know Thandir and you have no blame for that I promise you, in fact they spoke of your efforts with great fondness, both those that went to Mandos and those that sailed that I met during my time back in Aman after being reborn"
Eventually Thandir calmed down with Glorfindel simply waiting patiently for that to happen. Once that was done instead of allowing Thandir to feel pressured in explaining what had happened to him once he began to succor the survivors of Gondolin Glorfindel suggested that they have some food for it was well past meal time and then if Gild-Galad allowed it the two of them would spend some alone time and Glorfindel would tell Thandir of his time in Aman, more specifically the initial period after he had been Reborn. As it turned out Gil-Galad had planned on letting the two of them have alone time since he was well aware of Thandir's history with Glorfindel. Elrond meanwhile knew that there was more that Glorfindel had to tell him about his parents but he too knew Thandir's history regarding Glorfindel and knew that both of them needed to hear each other's side regarding the refugees from Gondolin that neither might know about, though it was more likely that Thandir was less aware than Glorfindel was
"I will allow both of you the next week off, however I do have one stipulation and that's the fact that neither of you are to actually leave the city, also know that you have your own special rules Thandir, especially considering what is coming soon"
"I know sire"
"Thandir?"
"I've...struggled in the past regarding an upcoming event it's actually why everyone is currently giving me such a wide berth at the moment due to my...emotional reactions"
"Why are you emotional...this is around the time you found out about Gondolin and my death isn't it?"
"Yes, and I mourned your death heavily, and if you've talked to those who sailed and those who faded then you know how bad it got at times during the initial mourning period"
"Right, I understand, the fact that it took time between the fall of Gondolin and you finding out probably didn't help matters either"
"No, it didn't"
"Well hopefully with time the pain of that day will be faded or gone since I'm here to help you through it now"
"Yes, maybe some day that will be the case"
The next week helped Thandir primarily, but also Glorfindel to heal from what had happened when Thandir found out about the fall of Gondolin, and though they didn't realize it at the time it also began a fledgling friendship that would come into full under Elrond's command over both of them in them serving Elrond's house
"Thandir...what happened exactly when you found out about my death? I'm only asking because it seems like everyone is cautious around you during that time period"
Thandir sighs
"It wasn't easy as you've already been told, what you haven't been told is exactly how I reacted to your death"
"I know that you wept when you found out about my death and that you succured the survivors even if some faded or chose to sail later"
"Yes, but there's more to the story, things that the survivors of Gondolin didn't know about because I hid them well"
With that Thandir thinks back to those early days and years after hearing of Glorfindel's death
The day he found out
Thandir alerted the guard to the fact that there was a large group of people coming towards them and that they looked to be in rough shape
"What has happened?"
"Balrogs...they attacked Gondolin"
"Gondolin has fallen?"
"Yes, we...we managed to escape but one...one followed us"
"How did you survive?"
"Glorfindel, he managed to defeat the Balrog, however it cost him his own life, we've traveled long and hard since then to find a place of rest"
"Then come, you shall find rest here"
Once he was sure that the survivors were being taken care of by others Thandir wept for the loss of Glorfindel, for while they were not truly friends the two had managed to put aside their differences enough to end a long standing family feud and to hear that Glorfindel had died defending his people meant that Thandir understood what a blow it was to the survivors to lose such a staunch defender. As the survivors started to come out of their haze of grief they either talked about potentially sailing or they began to fade which hurt Thandir in a way that no one realized because due to the fact that they were coming out of their haze within a day or two because while they were in shock they had had several weeks to process what they had gone through they were more ready for a decision, Thandir wasn't ready to lose any of them and started getting snappy and emotional
Present
"It took years before I stopped snapping at any mention of Gondolin and it's fall if it wasn't from a survivor and even longer to not be emotionally compromised at same mention. As it is I've only just recently gotten to the point where people have to be careful around me only during the closest period of discovering the fall of Gondolin and your death. Whenever I lost survivors it wasn't pleasant to be around me either by the way"
"I see, again, hopefully I can help you now that I'm here"
"Maybe you can Glorfindel, maybe...maybe while you have a different mission to have returned here the Valar knew I needed help myself and knew you were the only one who could help me with that healing"
It would take time but eventually Thandir did heal with the help of Glorfindel and the anniversary of when Thandir found out Gondolin had fallen no longer pained him but he never forgot it knowing that he was the reason some managed to survive long enough to sail