Written for Fandom Stocking 2015.
Elrond's library has always been a refuge for Estel. There are no children here his own age; the books are his companion and consolation.
Now he takes a book down from the shelf: the life and deeds of the chieftains of the Dúnedain. He holds the book in his hands for a moment. He has read it before, many times; but it is different now that he knows. These are my ancestors. My family.
He turns the pages to the very end, to Arathorn son of Arador, and traces the letters of Arathorn's name with an unsteady hand. My father.