Category: Tolkien-Universe
Rating: M
Couples: Vairë/Namó, mention of canon ones
Warnings: AU, blood, mentions of torture, character death
Chapter: one-shot
Copyright: Characters & places © By Tolkien Estate, Plot & OC´s © by me
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He had not expected to end up in these Halls any time soon, yet here they were. His ëala felt raw, from where he had tried to keep Eä in one piece by brute force.
"Manwë..." Varda was tucked against his side, allowing him to lean on her, as much as he could in this body-less space.
He pulled himself together, lances of pain in his being, before looking around. As a quick headcount gave him, the Ainur that had descended into Eä had all managed to return in more or less one piece, though several seemed to be in a state alike to himself.
It was mostly as he recalled it, but for swarms of small motes of light that filled the empty spaces between them.
"These..." He reached for one small firefly-like light in front of them, his mind being filled with the image of a golden-haired ellon when he made contact. "Ingwë? Are these...?" He straightened some, paying more attention. Yes, there seemed to be two distinct swarms around Yavanna and Aulë, the Ents and Dwarves clustering around their respective makers.
Which meant... The rest were the elves then, for the most part around him and the other Valar, though in the distance he saw Melian with a substantial cluster of her own. She looked utterly battered, no doubt having tried to protect what Moriquendi she could as Arda fell apart around them all. Estë was moving over, gathering her Maia close with a soft hum.
"Where...?" He didn't get to finish his sentence before she moved their attention to a different part of the gathering.
Melkor was in the center of his own cluster of warped Maia, standing in a proverbial corner. He looked highly uncomfortable. But no, he could not care for his brother right now. He would be a fool if he assumed him innocent in whatever had happened to end Eä prematurely.
Between them was the kin he actually cared about; Namó was on the ground, his spectral form skeletal and wan. His two closest siblings were clinging to him, a move that was safe now that they could no longer die. Nienna was weeping with the elder of the Fëanturi, as he clawed at the stones before him between low howls of agony. Irmo was silent, but his grip on his brother was firm and inescapable.
"Did she...?" They had all felt it, though no doubt Namó the worse, when Vairë had fallen. If she was not here, did that mean...?
"A spirit from the darkness beyond Eä, father said while you were recovering." Oromë crouched down next to them, a small cluster of Children orbiting his head. He felt like most of those would probably be the followers of his Hunt. "Bearing a poison of Unlight, which apparently was potent enough to extinguish the light of an Ainu once it started feeding and strengthening."
"How did...?" He trembled, not even noticing at the elvish motes clustered closer.
"Apparently, Melkor made a deal with it to destroy the Trees, to steal the Silmarils and get back to his holdings in the East, but they ran into Vairë." Their ëala did not actually have the level of detail their fana would have, but he was pretty certain his fellow Aratar would be barring his teeth if he had them. "He claims he did not know it could do that..."
That, he would believe. He doubted his brother would team up with something that could end him.
"So... what now?" They needed Vairë, for more than that she was one of them. She played the role of conductor, keeping their songs in harmony with one another. Without her, no matter how much they practiced, and tried, sooner or later the Song of the Ainur would just fail again without her to keep them in pattern. Clearly. He rose to a semblance of his feet, helping Varda up as well. "Eä..."
"Utterly gone, barring what souls we managed to save." Did that imply they did not get everyone!? That, he preferred not to think about.
Above them, Eru loomed, looking down upon them with an unreadable expression. Was he disappointed? He could not tell.
"Namó..." They had time later to worry about that. He kept some distance, out of range of the brief flashes of energy that looked like they hurt. "Oh... I am sorry..." Perhaps he would deserve this. How could he have let this happen? The rest joined him, though most of the elves seemed to remain apart, dipping off to several of the Maiar.
"Namó." It was Eru that spoke next, leaning forward a bit.
It took him a bit, but the Doomsman managed to gather himself enough to look up, supported by his siblings. "Give her back... give her back to me." No one was quite sure if it was a plea, or a demand.
Their father's face gentled and softened. "Of course." He reached down carefully, pouring a small form from both hands onto the ground. She was weak still, her ëala fragile and smaller still than the rest of them, build from the scraps of thread he had managed to save. But she was here, her pastel colors almost fading into the surroundings.
Namó moaned, scrambling forward to gather her close, tucking her securely into his being until the only hint any of them had of her existence was her weak laughter from inside her spouse's depths. They wound together, nearly mixing fully in front of everyone. It was an act usually reserved for private moments, well away from the rest of them, but no one cared.
Varda settled against his side, and he leaned in.