"Well done, penneth," praised Glorfindel, leaning down to ruffle her hair. "I'm very proud of you. Can you remember anything else?"
Alassë screwed her eyes shut and concentrated as hard as she could. For a moment, she heard a voice whisper 'Quel kaima, tithen-pen-nin. Amin mela lle.' but it slipped away again and her mind once more went completely blank.
"No more," she whispered, hanging her head as her eyes filled with tears. Glorfindel took pity on her and sat down on the edge of the bed, cupping her chin and making her meet his eyes.
"It matters not." he told her gently. "We can help you remember. There is no hurry."
"Good morning!" a merry, silvery voice called suddenly, as a beautiful golden haired elleth appeared, lifting her from the bed and into a secure embrace. "And how fare you today, dear heart?" Alassë simply gaped at this new arrival. How many elves were there in this place? Glorfindel smiled fondly at her confusion.
"Little one, this is Lady Celebrian, Lord Elrond's wife," he explained. "It will take a while for you to get used to having so many different elves around, but I am sure you will know everyone's names in no time."
"We will help you there," smiled Elladan reassuringly. "Although you should ask me first, generally. I am the clever one of the pair, after all!"
"Ha! The conceited one, more like!" retorted Elrohir. "It is as well that I am the charming one, then, brother!" Alassë let out a timid giggle, set at ease by this friendly banter between the two identical elves. They both beamed back at her; delighted at having been able to raise a smile.
"Come with me, dear, and we shall see about finding you some clothes." said Celebrian affectionately, carrying Alassë out of the room.
"Do you think she will be all right now, Glorfindel?" asked Elrohir worriedly, when they departed. "Will Ada help her remember the rest of her family?"
"He can try, Elrohir," replied Glorfindel. "She may be able to remember everything on her own in time, as she did just now, but Mithrandir did mention a way to look into her past if she fails to recover her memory. What she really needs is for us all to be patient and gentle with her, and – more than anything – she needs to know what it is to be loved."
"We can certainly teach her that!" said Elladan positively. "Already I am longing to see her smile more!"
"I doubt you not," smiled Glorfindel. The twins were both exceptionally good-humoured young elves and it was almost impossible to be unhappy when around them. Their presence would certainly do the child the world of good! "We should inform your father of this progress."
With the twins at his sides, Glorfindel proceeded down the corridor and down the stairs into a bright, airy room, where he found Elrond, Thranduil, Celeborn and Mithrandir were already gathered, while Haldir and Legolas were amusing Arwen by the window.
"She's awake, Elrond. Celebrian has gone to wash and dress her," said Glorfindel, in answer to their looks. "But she's managed to remember something. She is a twin!"
"A twin?" asked Thranduil in surprise, and Glorfindel nodded.
"She said that she has a twin brother called Feredir," he told them, before gesturing towards Elladan and Elrohir. "Seeing these two seemed to unlock a door for her. But that was all she managed to recall. The rest continues to elude her for the present. And she still continues to cringe and despair at the sound of her name."
"We were just discussing that," said Elrond quietly. "Part of me wishes to wait and see if her memories return with the help of time. However, the other part of me wants to find out who abused her as soon as I can. We need to know if there were any other children suffering with her, and we need to put a stop to it. I also fear that if she does finally remember, she will keep the grief bottled in her heart and refrain from telling us. She seems so afraid of judgement. She needs to know she is not at fault. I far-spoke with Galadriel last night. We can use the rings to look into her past, and Alassë will see it along with us."
"Are you sure?" questioned Glorfindel warily. "I have heard that such a treatment can cause as much harm as good. Are you certain she will be able to handle it?"
"I am certain it will help her," said Elrond softly. "She already despairs at how little she can recall. It will at least help her remember who she is. Naturally, I expect she will grow very upset, but we can ensure that we console her and help her come to terms with it."
"I understand," Glorfindel nodded. "Are you going to explain to her that you wish to adopt her?"
"Yes," Elrond replied. "I will tell her before we look into her past, and I will make sure that afterwards, she knows that nothing has changed and that she is still welcome and guiltless in our eyes. I am still completely against the idea of trying to find her family; unless that is what she herself desires."
"I think that is a good idea," Celeborn spoke up. "Above everything, we must make it clear to her that she bears no guilt for whatever has happened." The others nodded quietly; they were still horrified that a child so young could imagine she was to blame for the death of another.
"We should explain to our elflings first," said Thranduil, looking over at the three children playing by the window. Elrond beckoned them all over.
The normally high-spirited elflings remained quiet while Elrond explained to them that Alassë had been very badly hurt by someone; how she had been all alone; and hoe not even the border guards had picked up the sign of any other person near Imladris. He then explained that he wanted to take her in and let her grow up in a happy household, where she would be safe and learn how to behave like the child she was.
"So that means I get a sister, Ada?" Arwen burst in excitedly. "I get to be a big sister?"
"Yes, iel-nin, if Alassë wishes to remain here, you will indeed have a sister." Elrond smiled, glad that all his children approved of the idea.
"Hurrah!" exclaimed Arwen happily. "I will have someone to play dolls with! Brothers are no fun sometimes!"
It was difficult not laugh at Arwen's reaction and the twins indignant looks, but the elder elves all tried to hold back their chuckles. Arwen was forever trying to persuade the twins into playing with dolls along with her and, while they were the most affectionate of brothers who were always happy to play with her, it was one indulgence that they always flatly refused!
"What about her twin?" asked Legolas quietly, from his seat by his father.
"I am loath to find her family, Legolas, because I think they have treated her very badly," Elrond told him gently. "I will not try to locate them unless Alassë herself asks me to. We are going to look into the past and discover what happened to her."
"May we watch too?" asked Haldir, and Elrond shook his head.
"No, penneth." he told him firmly. "I do not want you, Legolas or Arwen to see this, for I do not believe that these will be scenes for elfling eyes." Elladan was not convinced.
"But Alassë had to see them, Ada," he pointed out. "Mayhap we can help her better if we all know what happened." Haldir and Legolas immediately backed him up.
"I think they do have a point there, Elrond," Celeborn reasoned. "If they think they can bear to see, we should let them watch. That way, as Elladan says, they will know what they are helping her recover from. It will also prevent Alassë from fearing they will find out and judge her."
"All right," Elrond said, defeated. "But I completely forbid Arwen from watching. She is still far too young!"
Too Arwen's horror, Celeborn, Thranduil and Glorfindel all agreed. Pouting, she began to protest, but stopped short when her mother entered the room with Alassë in her arms.
Elrond stood as his wife came in and took the child from her. She was bathed, groomed and dressed in a green gown Arwen had grown out of. Even then, it was still far too loose on her skinny frame than it should have been for a child of her age.
Sitting down with Alassë on his knee, Elrond began to inspect the grazes on her knees and face, and looked at the hand where the glass had come out of. Meanwhile, Alassë began to glance round the room in surprise, her eyes lingering on Arwen, Haldir and Legolas. How many elves were there in this place? Suddenly, her eyes settled on Mithrandir and she froze.
It took quite a moment for Celeborn to explain that Mithrandir was a friend and even longer to explain what a wizard was, but eventually Alassë managed to understand and relax, though she still regarded the Maia with wary eyes, having never before seen anyone quite like this gruff, bearded Istari. Suddenly, Elrond raised his head again, stunned.
"I am very pleased with this. I have never seen such speed!" he told the others, before looking at Alassë in surprise. "Your wounds are healing at an astonishing rate, Alassë."
The child cringed at the sound of her name, then gave a blank shrug.
"They always do, except my back," she said simply. "He gets very cross if I can't do things properly because I am hurt." Elrond thought that this was outrageous, considering that it was this 'master' who had inflicted all this pain on her in the first place.
"I have much I want to tell you this morning, little one," Elrond told her and she looked back into his eyes again. "Firstly, I know you have been on your own and you have suffered much grief. I want this to stop now. You do not deserve such a life, nor does any elfling. You deserve to be safe and happy, which is why I want you to stay here in Imladris with me. I would raise you as my own and let you have the life you deserve."
"You…you want me to stay here?" Alassë could barely believe her ears. She regarded Elrond with huge eyes. "You want to be my Ada?"
"That is what I would like, penneth, yes," Elrond said gently, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear. "That is what we all would like." He indicated the twins, Arwen and Celebrian.
"I know you had a Nana of your own, little one," said Celebrian gently, coming to stand beside them. "And I would never dream of replacing her. But I would like to be a second Nana to you, if you would let me."
Alassë was completely bewildered. They wanted her to stay? They wanted her to be part of their family? They didn't want to send her back out where she came from?
"Would you like that?" Elrond asked her softly, noticing the way she snuggled closer into his arms. She nodded soundlessly, hiding her face in his chest. He simply held her for a moment, knowing that she was overwhelmed by the knowledge that someone actually cared about her. "You will never have to be alone again," he promised. "Never again. I promise you." And in the safety of Elrond's arms, Alassë finally started to believe them.
Elrond gave her a moment to take the information in, simply holding her and stroking her hair; little signs of gentle affection to help her stay calm. He waited until she was ready and looking at him before he proceeded.
"Glorfindel told me that you remembered your brother?" he questioned gently. She nodded. "Alassë, Mithrandir and I know a way to let you, and us, see into your past, so that you can remember where you came from and what happened to you, but we will not proceed unless you wish us to. It is entirely your decision."
"I…I'll see what happened to me?" Alassë swallowed nervously. She wasn't sure if she liked the idea or not.
"Yes. Mithrandir and I bear rings which have a great deal of power in them," Elrond explained. "We can channel this energy and your hazy memories into a mirror, which will allow us to see who hurt you and stop them from ever doing it again."
The child continued to hesitate, indecision and fear visible in her eyes and she hung her head again. It was painful to witness. Elrond cupped her chin and raised her eyes to his again.
"I promise, whatever we see, whatever has happened, nothing is going to change," he whispered. "I will still want you to stay here. I will still think you guiltless and I will still want to protect you. Nothing will change, you have my word."
Reassured, but far from convinced, Alassë nodded. Elrond asked Arwen to leave, so Celebrian went with her. Haldir and Legolas again asked to be allowed to stay and were granted permission. Elrond then passed a trembling Alassë onto Thranduil's lap,while Celeborn pulled a tall vertical mirror over by their chairs, where Elrond and Mithrandir each placed a hand on it.
"Are you ready, little one?" asked Elrond once more. Held tightly by Thranduil,
Alassë nodded, her face draining of colour. Part of her wanted to run and hide and never know her past, but, having remembered her brother's name, she was desperate to know the rest.
"I…I am." she replied, her little fingers gripping the sleeves of Thranduil's blue velvet tunic. Thranduil's arms were still gentle but he tightened his embrace.
Elrond and Mithrandir both kept a hand on the mirror and placed their other hands atop her head. Concentrating hard, they began to channel their energy through their respective rings.
Alassë swallowed audibly as their reflections disappeared and a white mist began to swirl in the large mirror. Thranduil offered her a hand, which she gripped fervently, as the mist faded and figures began to become visible.