I neither created nor own Valinor, Middle Earth, Imladris/Rivendell, Green Wood the Great, Doriath, Galadriel, Glorfindel, Erestor, Elrohir, Elladan, Elrond, Estel/Aragorn, Melian, Luthien, or Elwing. Tolkien created them, and I am most grateful to him for doing so. However, I did create Mellolaes, Cuilbron, and Alphtithen.

This story is for entertainment purposes only, so please read and be entertained.

"I hear our lord, princes, and captain are back."

Erestor turned still holding Estel. Cuilbron stood in the doorway. Althithen was poking her head inside too smiling at him, or maybe Estel, or perhaps both.

Erestor nodded and walked toward them. Both backed away and stopped smiling. He followed and plopped Estel into the healer's arms.

Cuilbron caught the manling in a proper hold and turned widened eyes upon the steward. His expression, though, was nothing compared to Estel's. The manling raised large, watering eyes and pouty lips to his friend. Altiphen's gaze darted back and forth from Estel, Cuilbron, and Erestor. She took three steps back from the group and folded her hands behind her back seemingly afraid her steward would fill them with something squirmy, awkward, and important too if she left them available.

Erestor tucked his chin in and met the manling's sad gaze unflinchingly first. "Cuilbron is going to carry you to your ada, brothers, and Glorfindel, Estel.

The boy's pout flashed away into a shining grin. Cuilbron scowled. He growled in Noldo over his patient's head. "You want 'me' to explain the last month and more to our lord?"

Erestor met the healer's glare without changing expression. "You may tell him the whole truth and absolve yourself and all other parties, save myself, from guilt in his eyes. I have something to accomplish before whatever punishment our lord hands down falls upon me."

Cuilbron's eyes went wide again, but then he stood aside to let Erestor pass. After that, he turned and strode with the manling to the head of the stairs. "Come then, Estel. We are going to greet your father, brothers, and friend."

"YAY!"

Altithen curtsied to Erestor with a beaming smile, and then turned and strode down the hallway too. Erestor went the opposite direction to a hidden door in the hallway. After passing through it, he headed down one of the servant passages to arrive on the first floor. He paused in a parlor off the main entryway. He heard the slight sounds of elven armor, four sets, moving with their wearers into the house, past the room he stood in, and up the great flight of stairs. Then he poked his head out into the main hallway. The boy's nurse stood at the bottom of the stairs gazing up. Erestor whispered her direction. "Mellolaes …"

The elleth turned to him with widened eyes. The ellon stepped further into her line of sight and spoke again. "I was hoping you might accompany me outside. That way our lord, his children, and our captain will reunite in privacy and we can speak together with the same for a short while."

Mellolaes' brows rose, but she walked to him. He turned and left the house, passed through the gardens, and strode down to a stream. She followed.

Mellolaes noticed it was the same stream she had sat over in the willow tree when Glorfindel found her. The area was a different bend of it, though. Erestor stopped and stood staring into the gently moving water. She sat and pressed her back into the trunk of a great tree before lifting her gaze to watch him. He spoke first. "What did you tell my lord, princes, and their captain after you … reprimanded Elladan?"

Mellolaes smiled, then her lips turned down somewhat as she shrugged. "I told them Estel had been very ill, probably due to the visit of a fevered man to our valley earlier. Then I said he had more excellent care than I'd ever seen a manling receive before, was now much better, and currently eager to see them all."

Erestor's shoulders fell a little. A sad smile turned up the corner of his mouth as he shook his head. "You again left out the part about me."

Mellolaes shrugged and smiled.

Erestor stared into the water as his expression softened. "You are very kind, Mellolaes."

A corner of her mouth quirked up farther. Erestor sighed, closed his eyes, and he went on. "You are as kind to me as Melian and Luthien were."

Mellolaes' eyes widened. She raised a hand and pressed it to her chest over her heart while staring still more intently as him. Erestor nodded. "Yes." He turned to and pierced the elleth with a harder gaze. "That is one reason I brought you here before speaking to our lord. Elrond does not know what you learned from Glorfindel." He fell silent a moment and swallowed before going on. "Few do. As far as most know, I am 'kin of Luthien.' Galadriel, our captain, and Idrehnotar know I came here with them from Valinor long ago, but you may be the only one born long after to know it."

Mellolaes blinked at him. "Why?"

Erestor gazed down as his feet. "After the death of my … my heart-brother, I could no longer live in a Noldor city, 'any' Noldo city. So, I traveled to the girdle of Melian."

Erestor raised his gaze to meet Mellolaes'. She had set her elbow on her knee and rested her chin on her fist, but her eyes had now gone even wider and her skin paler than usual. He voice came out breathless. "'That' was a very dangerous journey!"

Erestor gave a stiff nod. "It was. When I arrived, I looked unwell, and Thingol was not happy I had successfully reached his kingdom. He was quite cross when I was brought before him. Melian spoke up for me. She said she could see as disreputable as I looked I was no danger to their kingdom and could even do it good. I promised not to try to return to my own kin and vowed to serve theirs as if they were my own and I had never done anything else. I promised to do so the rest of my days in arda, however many or few they were if he and his kin continued to allow me to do so. He agreed. Melian and Luthien treated me like a patient at first. Soon though, I insisted they treat me like a servant. Afterward, I was allowed to serve in various compacities as my strength and knowledge of their kingdom grew. When Thingol perished and Melian fled, I continued to serve in their household even as Doriath grew dim without their light. I served their grandson and his family. Then, at his death, I fled the sons of Feonor with the party escorting Elwing. I mourned her father and hated his killers as much as any of them. When we arrived beside the sea, I helped her and the others settle. Then I told all there who knew me before my journey to Doriath not to confuse her or any of those born after I left the Noldo. I was 'kin of Luthien.' That was all any needed to know about me. I continued to serve Elwing, and then her sons. I serve her son now."

"Why does the truth from before need to remain hidden? How can it threaten the bonds you've forged with them all their lives?"

Erestor raised his gaze to see Mellolaes leaning over her crossed legs and staring up at him with intent, but unthreatening green eyes. He sighed. "What good would it do?"

Mellolaes straightened, reached into her sleeve, drew something out, and presented it to him. Erestor raised his brows at the sight and glanced up at her. "Do you usually have this hidden upon your person?"

The Silvan nodded with a smirk. "Examine it."

He reached out and took the dagger. His eyes widened further. The blade and hilt were of a polished brown stone with streaks of black running throughout it. The blade was long and thin, with perfectly symmetrical sides and edges sharp enough to slice through a single hair cleanly. Carved into the hilt were inward curves. They would allow thin fingers to grip it tightly. Where blade met hilt there was chiseled out the design of a fawn curled up as if in the hollow of the tree the weapon was meant to resemble. In the main hilt itself was carved a form almost unnoticeable to human eyes. Erestor, however, could see it was meant to be a baby squirrel. At the top of the hilt was a cap of green obsidian carved to seem like a mass of tiny leaves, some raised to the sun, others resting in shade where the hues of the stone itself changed. Within them was a bird of the same brown obsidian as the rest of the knife sitting upon its nest.

Erestor nodded over the dagger. "It was made for you."

Mellolaes nodded back with a smile. "But by whom?"

Erestor's brow furrowed in concentration. He examined the weapon again. A name was carved into the blade itself. Again, the thin-lined, shallow letters in elvish would be imperceptible to human eyes, but he was able to read them. "Sarnhael Celuant."

"What can you tell about him from his work?"

Erestor ran his gaze up and down the weapon again. So perfectly fitted was the brown bird and nest into the green stone it seemed all one piece. No tool he knew of would fit between the stones and pry the design loose from its setting. The blade's symmetrical proportions were exact. The letters themselves were neat, evenly spaced, and the angels of some of the lines along with their width gave it away entirely. Erestor's brows rose. "He is … Noldo, is he not?"

Mellolaes gave a soft smile and nod. "He was born so, but has lived among our people and been accepted as our own for well over an age."

Erestor nodded again before holding the blade back out to her. "So, I am not the only one. I did realize this before, but it is interesting to see the work of another with a like story."

Mellolaes glanced at the knife and then back up at Erestor. "Keep it."

The Noldo's brows rose again. "Why?"

"Because I want you to remember the worth of one who came from a different place, settled among another people, and thrives there helping them thrive too."

Erestor gave her a smile. "I thank you for the sentiment, but you should keep your weapon."

Mellolaes smirked before leaning back into the tree again. She shook her head. "I will not allow you to return it until my healer's-intuition tells me my gift has accomplished its task."

Erestor rolled his eyes and then rose to his feet, placing the blade in his belt. He held his hand out to her. "Have you another?"

Mellolaes placed her hand in his and let him help her up. Her eyes glinted as she nodded. Erector smiled and nodded back. "Alright then, I shall keep it with me to satisfy you. For a little while."

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God Bless and keep you

ScribeofHeroes